"Visit to Dokdo Was Preplanned... A Diplomatic Warning from the Yoon Administration"
Regarding the 'Line Incident' triggered by administrative guidance from Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Kim Jun-hyung, a proportional representative-elect of the Innovation Party of the Republic of Korea, stated, "The Yoon Seok-yeol administration should summon the Japanese ambassador to protest," and claimed that if it had been the Moon Jae-in administration, it would have responded immediately after identifying the incident in November last year.
Kim, who previously served as the president of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy, said on SBS Radio's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show' on the 14th, "They should have identified the situation in November last year and responded from then on, but they are trying to evade responsibility just by meeting," and criticized, "If they met, they should have either prevented this incident, devised countermeasures, or persuaded Japan, but there is nothing at all." He added, "If it had been the Moon Jae-in administration, they would have taken action," and pointed out, "It feels like the problem is already tilted, and isn't that what we are talking about now?"
According to Sung Tae-yoon, the Chief of Policy Office at the Presidential Secretariat, the government discussed the facts and response measures with Naver immediately after the Naver Cloud hacking incident was reported in November last year, and confirmed the facts regarding the administrative guidance with the Japanese government in April.
Kim criticized, "We need to question why the Japanese government intervened in the market and private companies," and said, "They should demand that Japan refrain from political interference and resolve security issues as security matters." He also predicted, "Japan will think it has gained the upper hand," and "Since Japan sees itself as having an advantage over Korea, it will not concede in the future."
He also viewed the current Line Incident as an issue connected to the forced mobilization during the Japanese colonial period and the discharge of contaminated water from Fukushima. Kim claimed, "The Korean and Japanese governments saw the forced mobilization issue as an obstacle to improving Korea-Japan relations," and "Despite public opposition, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration has defended Japan." He continued, "When the contaminated water issue arose, the current government did not protest to Japan and even met with Korean fishermen," and criticized, "If Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is involved in the Line Yahoo incident, we should protest to the Ministry, so why are we only meeting with Naver?"
However, Kim explained that the visit to Dokdo by Cho Guk and other Innovation Party leaders at the party level the previous day was a pre-planned event unrelated to the Line Yahoo incident. He said, "We have been discussing this internally for 3 to 4 weeks," and explained, "It was planned to warn against the Yoon administration's overall excessively pro-Japanese stance and to show determination before the opening of the 22nd National Assembly." He added, "It was not a hastily made plan, but seeing it coincide with the Line Yahoo incident shows that this itself is not separate from the context of this government," and claimed, "They have continuously conducted submissive diplomacy toward Japan."
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