President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during their summit at the truce village of Panmunjeom, April 27, 2018. / Korea Times file

By Kang Seung-woo

Following the sweeping victory by the ruling party in the general election, the Moon Jae-in administration's North Korea policy is expected to gain momentum.

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and its affiliate, Civil Together, won 60 percent of all seats in the 300-strong National Assembly. Given that the April 15 parliamentary elections served as a referendum on Moon's presidency, now in the third year of his five-year term, the win is likely to give more political space for his government to continue pursuing its policy agenda related to the North.

Inter-Korean relations have remained at a standstill as diplomacy between the two countries has been deadlocked since the collapse of the Hanoi summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in February 2019.

"The resounding election triumph has cleared the way for the Moon administration to push harder for its Korean Peninsula peace process," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies.

In a New Year speech, Moon stressed the need for inter-Korean cooperation for peace on the peninsula along with internationally coordinated solutions ― zero tolerance for war, mutual security guarantees and common prosperity.

In addition, the unification ministry also unveiled its annual policy plan last month, under which it will seek reconciliation and exchange projects with the North such as individual trips to the reclusive nation and a renewed proposal to transform the demilitarized zone (DMZ) into a peace area.

During the outgoing Assembly, President Moon often saw numerous bills linked to inter-Korean relations stalled as the rival parties bickered over them, preventing any progress; but in the incoming parliament, the ruling bloc's super-majority will enable the party to avoid such political conflict as it can now fast-track the passage of bills without support from the other parties.

During the election campaign, the DPK also pledged to promote inter-Korean exchanges and cooperation, giving a boost to the government.

"Stalled inter-Korean ties are due to a deadlock in U.S.-North diplomacy, but a lack of parliamentary support for the government's policy toward the North is also responsible," said Lim Eul-chul, a professor of North Korean studies at Kyungnam University.

Cho Hey-sil, the unification ministry's deputy spokesman, also said last week that the ministry will closely cooperate with the incoming Assembly when pursuing inter-Korean policy.