South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol stressed Tuesday that the country “must never succumb to the forces of communist totalitarianism” during Liberation Day speech.

“We must never succumb to the forces of communist totalitarianism,” Yoon said, during the 78th Liberation Day address commemorating the end of Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula on Tuesday.

“We must not be deceived by those who follow and serve them,” Yoon said, referring to the forces of communist totalitarianism as disguising themselves “as democracy activists, human rights advocates or progressive activists while engaging in despicable and unethical tactics and false propaganda.”

Yoon also noted that Korea’s independence movement did not simply seek to regain stolen national sovereignty or return to monarchy and it was “never an attempt to establish a communist totalitarian state where freedom and human rights are ignored.”

“Our independence movement was to build a nation that is free and democratic; a nation where the people are its rightful owners; and a nation where freedom, human rights and the rule of law reign supreme,” Yoon said.

The president added that Korea should “stand united in the spirit of solidarity.”

From such a perspective, Yoon stressed the need for solidarity with countries that share the same values and stated that Japan, which the country had to gain liberation from 78 years ago, is now a “partner.”

“Korea and Japan are now partners who share universal values and pursue common interests,” Yoon said. “As partners that cooperate on security and the economy, Korea and Japan will be able to jointly contribute to peace and prosperity across the globe while collaborating and exchanging in a future-oriented manner,” he added.

Regarding North Korea, Yoon said that the government “will steadfastly implement the Audacious Initiative he proposed last year to build peace with overwhelming force, and work together with the international community to lead the North Korean regime towards dialogue and cooperation, rather than nuclear weapons and missiles, to improve the livelihood of the North Korean people.”

Looking ahead to the upcoming trilateral summit between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan at the U.S. presidential retreat Camp David in three days, Yoon anticipated that it will set “a new milestone in trilateral cooperation contributing to peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region.”

By Park In-hye, Park Yun-gyun, and Yoon Yeon-hae

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