South Korea’s new president takes office, signals willingness to engage in talks with North Korea

Reporting from Seoul, South Korea —  South Korea’s new president took office on Wednesday promising a more accessible and trustworthy administration — and signaling an immediate change in tone on dealing with North Korea’s emerging nuclear threat.

Moon Jae-in, a lawyer and former opposition leader, took the oath about midday — roughly 12 hours after he declared victory in a dramatic, two-month election contest to replace the country’s disgraced former president, Park Geun-hye.

In a national address, Moon sought to reassure South Koreans that their new president would be different, especially after a tumultuous several months of scandal and political upheaval that sent millions of them into the streets, week after week, seeking change.

“I will set a new example as the president of the Republic of Korea. I will make my utmost efforts to become a president who will be viewed as a success by the public and by history,” he said, while also pledging to avoid a corruption scandal like the one that ensnared Park and her aides. “I will become a clean president. I take office empty-handed, and I will leave office the same way.”

A key portion of his speech focused on his approach to North Korea, an emerging nuclear state despite the objections of the international community, and alleviating tensions in the region. He pledged a diplomatic and more conciliatory approach toward Pyongyang, offering to go to the rival’s capital under the “right circumstances.”

Moon’s approach on North Korea could be closer to the former “sunshine” policy, when two previous administrations sought to improve cross-border relations through economic exchanges and direct dialogue with few conditions.

North Korea is a much different place now, however, under relatively new leader Kim Jong Un, the grandson of the authoritarian state’s communist patriarch. He has dramatically increased missile testing and nuclear development and has pledged to seek the ability to strike the United States mainland someday.

“He will soon realize there are major constraints because the security and geopolitical landscape is very different now than when he was last in government,” Duyeon Kim, a visiting senior fellow at the Korean Peninsula Future Forum in Seoul, said of Moon.

She said reinvigorating inter-Korean dialogue and exchange shouldn’t be terrible, however, for American interests.

“They might even help reduce tensions, as long as they don’t violate sanctions and cause strains and cleavages in the alliance,” Duyeon Kim said.

South Korea’s newly elected leader — its 19th president — pledged to have “serious discussions” about security with the United States, a key ally, and China, his nation’s chief trading customer. He said he would also travel immediately to Washington, if needed.

Relations between the three countries have been strained in recent months over the American deployment of a controversial defensive missile system on the peninsula known as THAAD, or Terminal High Altitude Area Defense. It has frustrated China, prompting recent economic retaliation.

The Trump administration has also frustrated some in South Korea with recent gaffes involving Korean history and the delayed — perhaps botched — deployment of an American aircraft carrier to the region as a sign of strength to the North. President Trump has also raised eyebrows suggesting South Korea pay more for its own security, and he has questioned a bilateral trade deal between the two countries.

Moon promised to protect South Korea with “self-reliant” and “mighty” defense capabilities. About 28,000 American troops are stationed here, and South Koreans rely on U.S. military hardware for protection and training.

By mid-afternoon, Moon held his first presidential news conference, announcing the appointment of several key aides — and pledging to work with opponents and to change the culture of the presidential office. One change, he said, would be regular press briefings on key issues — a measure of public accountability Park avoided.

Park was often criticized for her insular, autocratic style that was in some ways a rhetorical and symbolic throwback to the two-decade reign of her father, Park Chung-hee, a military dictator assassinated in 1979.

Moon’s administration also plans a new jobs push right away, hoping the government can help jump-start an economy plagued by high youth unemployment, household debt and income inequality.

“The economy is going through a difficult time in and outside Korea. Ordinary people’s livelihoods are under threat,” Moon said. “As I promised during my campaign, I will take care of the employment issue first.”

A focus on domestic and economic issues would be welcomed by South Koreans like Gwon Ga Rom, an office worker who lives in southern Seoul and wants an increase in the minimum wage or more job opportunities.

“I expect that things will change since we have a new president. I don’t know if he can change many things but I hope he does,” she said. “Anyone will be better than Park Geun-hye.”

Kwon Hye Yeon, 22, a student who lives in Seoul’s northeastern suburbs, cast her ballot for one of the conservatives in the race, but she too is open to a Moon presidency. She said some of his platform appealed to her.

“I’m not completely satisfied with Moon becoming president, but I’m not dissatisfied either,” she said. “I hope Moon is able to solve the problems that university students are facing.”

Moon’s eventful first day on the job began after vote counters finished their overnight work. Moon finished first in the 15-candidate race, with about 41% of the vote. Hong Joon-pyo, a conservative, came in second with 24%, followed by Ahn Cheol-soo, a centrist, with 21%.

Like in the United States, a newly elected president typically gets a two-month transition period. But Moon’s inauguration came quickly to fill the void left after Park was impeached by the National Assembly in December and removed from office in March. She has since been arrested on corruption charges and remains in jail.

Moon — the son of North Korean refugees who fled communism — assumed presidential duties only hours after the national elections commission officially declared him the winner. He then received a briefing from the nation’s top military official about preparedness and North Korea.

Before being sworn in, the former special forces soldier visited Seoul National Cemetery to honor past presidents and national heroes.

He also received congratulatory messages from the leaders of China and Japan, two key regional counterparts who have had rocky relations on diplomatic and security issues of late. The White House also congratulated Moon on his election, as did opposition party leaders in a pledge of unity.

South Koreans lined the streets as Moon traveled in a small motorcade to the Blue House — the presidential complex, named for its distinctly colored tile roof — in central Seoul. He stood from a limousine sunroof, waving to onlookers as the group traveled at pedestrian speed through Gwanghwamun Square — a place typically crowded with tourists but also the site of the mass peaceful protests in the last several months that led to Park’s ouster.

It’s this square where his administration, in a symbolic and geographic shift, plans to move some presidential offices inside a tall government ministry building — rather than the palatial and inaccessible Blue House.

“I will strive to get rid of authoritarian practices in the presidency,” he said.

Stiles is a special correspondent.