Seoul: South Korea is considering whether to join as a co-sponsor of this year's U.N. resolution on North Korean human rights, diplomatic sources revealed Tuesday. Seoul is deliberating on whether to withdraw its co-sponsorship of the resolution, a draft of which is slated for adoption at the 61st U.N. Human Rights Council later this month, sources familiar with the matter indicated.
According to Yonhap News Agency, if finalized, this decision would represent a shift from South Korea's previous co-sponsorship last year, which was unexpected under the new liberal government of President Lee Jae Myung. The administration has been striving to mend strained relations with Pyongyang. South Korea was among the 61 co-sponsors for the resolution adopted at the U.N. General Assembly Third Committee in December of last year.
The potential change in stance regarding this year's resolution arises as Seoul has made limited progress in enhancing its relations with North Korea and could be interpreted as another attempt at rapprochement. However, doubts linger over whether this conciliatory gesture would placate Pyongyang, as the North has continued its adversarial posture toward the South.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently described South Korea as the "most hostile state" in a speech to the newly elected parliament, as reported by the North's state media.
A member state of the U.N. has the option to join as a co-sponsor of a resolution up to two weeks post-adoption, allowing South Korea until mid-April to make its final decision. "We are under a comprehensive review, taking into account its broader effects to promote peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula, as well as the content of the resolution," a foreign ministry official stated.
The official further remarked, "What matters most is the practical improvement of the human rights of North Korean people, and we will continue to work with the international community toward that end."
Should South Korea opt out of co-sponsorship, it would be the first instance since 2022. From 2019-22, during the liberal government of former President Moon Jae-in, South Korea was not on the co-sponsors' list for North Korean human rights resolutions.
Seoul rejoined the co-sponsorship in 2023-25 under the conservative government of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who adopted a hard-line stance toward Pyongyang. Last year's resolution condemned "in the strongest terms" the persistent, systematic, and gross violations of human rights in and by North Korea, including those potentially amounting to crimes against humanity. It also criticized North Korea for allocating a disproportionate amount of resources to military spending and the pursuit of unlawful nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs at the expense of its people's welfare.