I will strengthen the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
— Moon Jae-in
The relationship with China has become more important, not only in terms of economic cooperation but also for strategic cooperation for the peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue. That is why I am pursuing a balanced diplomacy with the U.S. as well as China.
I do not see it as desirable for South Korea to take the back seat and watch discussions between the U.S. and China.
My goal is to resolve the North Korean nuclear problem and solidify peace during my term.
I will be president for all South Koreans.
South Korea and the U.S. share common interests with regard to the North Korean nuclear issue, so I promise that South Korea will fully consult with the U.S. on the deployment of THAAD.
One of the biggest problems with this THAAD deployment decision was that it lacked democratic procedure, and it has resulted in a wide division of the nation and aggravated foreign relations.
I will become a clean president. I will become a president who can retire home as an ordinary citizen and is welcomed by neighbors.
I am well aware of the concern and fear of the Chinese about the THAAD deployment.
Denuclearization and the lasting peace on the Korean peninsula cannot be abandoned or delayed, as they are the historical assignment.
The president who achieved a true democracy. The president who built a peaceful relationship between the North and the South. The president who achieved a more equal and fair economy. That's how I want to be remembered.
I hope peace is a part of everyday life.
My father fled from the North, hating communism.
President Trump should win the Nobel Peace Prize. What we need is only peace.
I will restore a government based on principle and justice.
When peaceful reunification comes, the first thing I want to do is to take my 90-year-old mother and go to her home town.
I'll always be on the move for peace in the Korean peninsula. If necessary, I will fly straight to Washington. I will go to Beijing and Tokyo and, if the conditions allow, to Pyongyang as well.
We can't afford to lose all that we've built from the ashes of the Korean War.
If necessary, we will have to strengthen sanctions even further, but the goal of sanctions must be to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table.
There will be no war repeated on the Korean Peninsula.
To respond to North Korea by having our own nuclear weapons will not maintain peace on the Korean Peninsula and could lead to a nuclear arms race in Northeast Asia.
South Korea was able to build its national security thanks to the U.S., and the two nations will work together on the North Korean nuclear issue. However, I believe we need to be able to take the lead on matters in the Korean Peninsula as the country directly involved.
No one shall take a military action on the Korean Peninsula without South Korean consent.
I will engage in sincere negotiations with the United States and China to find a solution to the THAAD problem.
Creating a structure for mutual prosperity requires lowering regional and transnational barriers to facilitate the flow of goods and promote people-to-people interactions.
In 1988, the Summer Olympics were held in Korea, which was a divided country... It was an opportunity for the East and the West to come together in harmony and also take a significant role in ending the Cold War era.
Kim Jong-un is not a rational person.
I myself hate the communist North Korean system. That doesn't mean I should let the people in the North suffer under an oppressive regime.
The North and South were one people sharing one language and one culture for about 5,000 years. Ultimately, we should reunite.
Whenever democracy has fallen into a crisis, the Korean people have sprung up in rage.
I will be the proud president of a proud nation.
When I drink a little, I sometimes recall my old days. Then I ask myself, 'What does Roh Moo-hyun mean in my life?' He really defined my life. My life would have changed a lot if I didn't meet him. So he is my destiny.
My best quality is that I am persistent. My worst is that I am no fun.
I could sit down with Kim Jong-un, but I will not meet him for the sake of meeting him. I will meet Kim Jong-un when preconditions of resolving the nuclear issue are assured.
We must embrace the North Korean people as part of the Korean nation, and to do that, whether we like it or not, we must recognize Kim Jong-un as their ruler and as our dialogue partner.
I will be a president that can share a glass of soju with the public after work.
I do not agree that South Korea needs to develop our own nuclear weapons or relocate tactical nuclear weapons in the face of North Korea's nuclear threat.
I believe President Trump is more reasonable than he is generally perceived. President Trump uses strong rhetoric toward North Korea, but during the election campaign, he also said he could talk over a burger with Kim Jong-un. I am for that kind of pragmatic approach to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.
We will prevent war, whatever it takes.
The alliance with the United States is and will always be the foundation of our diplomacy and national security.
For Korea, ASEAN has undoubtedly been a special and valued friend.
My parents fled from North Korea during the Korean War because they despised the North Korean Communist regime. They fled to seek freedom and came to South Korea.
I believe that dialogue is necessary. We were unable to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue through only the sanctions and pressure.
Poverty dictated my childhood. But there were benefits as well: I became independent, more mature than my peers, and I realized that money is not the most important thing in life.
We must work to make the South-North Korea dialogue lead to talks between the United States and North Korea. Only then can we peacefully resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.
I will do whatever it takes to help settle peace on the Korean Peninsula.
I was thinking I wanted to finish my life there in Hungnam doing pro bono service.
