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[EDITORIALS]Stand up to the North

Published: 14 Dec. 2005, 22:12

A South Korean Foreign Ministry official has said, “Since North Korea fully denies manufacturing counterfeit money, facts will have to be established in a logically acceptable way.” The reasoning is that just because the United States argues it, it is not automatically a truth.
Among the Western world’s intelligence services, and those of South Korea, the North’s counterfeiting and circulation of that money is a well-known fact. In October, the United States announced it had uncovered a distribution network of fake North Korean-produced $100 bills in which the head of the Irish Workers’ Party was involved.
Under these circumstances, we have to criticize the North’s action and request measures be taken to prevent this recurring. Nevertheless, this government is arguing that since the North is denying it, how can one believe the accusations? This is absurd. If there is any doubt about the U.S. investigation, the facts can be confirmed through information-sharing. This just proves that the government’s claim there is no breach in the South Korea-U.S. alliance is hollow.
Counterfeiting money is a serious international crime that is not on the negotiation table. We have to bear in mind that if we keep such an attitude, there can be misunderstandings that we are shielding criminal activities. Stop looking to the North and say what there is to say. This should be our stance which will also help the North.