Minister Kim Young-ho said, "Consistently promote peaceful unification based on liberal democracy."

Unification Minister Kim Young-ho said he will continue to pursue a peaceful unification policy based on the basic liberal democratic order stipulated in the Constitution in the new year.

At a ceremony held at the Seoul Government Complex today, Minister Kim said, "We will make various efforts to prevent rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, but we will respond firmly to North Korea's wrong actions."

Minister Kim said the current situation on the Korean Peninsula is very fluid and uncertain, noting that North Korea will continue to strengthen its claim of "two hostile countries" and try to lock the door to inter-Korean relations even more firmly.

He then stressed that "two hostile countries" do not exist in our unification dictionary, and that the government makes it clear that any issues between the two Koreas, including easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, can be discussed through dialogue.