Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 204
Only Krnovel
#Episode 204 We are in a position to rule the country
September 25, 1952.
Government Complex.
Kuoooooo.
“Wow!”
“wow!”
“Three, oh my god!”
“… … .”
“… … .”
When the sight of a hydrogen bomb exploding was shown on the 100-inch screen attached to the front of the conference hall, the mouths of all attendees in the conference room dropped open.
I was astonished by its truly formidable power.
In particular, the shock of Kim Gyu-sik, who was the only one from this era, was even greater.
“Whoa! This is truly a weapon that should never be used again. “If war starts with bombs like that, humanity will be over.”
“That’s why it’s called a forbidden weapon. Paradoxically, war was suppressed because of those nuclear weapons.”
“haha! Anyway, it’s amazing. “It’s also scary.”
“You have to think of nuclear energy as a double-edged sword. If used well, it is very useful, but if not, it will be a disaster that will return humanity to the Stone Age. “That’s why we try so hard to control it.”
“… … .”
The atmosphere was eerily dark.
Now, South Korea has become the only country in the world to develop a hydrogen bomb.
However, its enormous power scared those who attended the meeting.
match!
Lee Kang-cheol clapped his hands as if to change the mood.
“Why is the atmosphere like this? It’s not like I didn’t know about it. Dr. Hong, thank you for your hard work. The same goes for all researchers.”
“haha! “It was a lot of hard work, but I’m still okay with the results.”
“no. Even though there are theories and knowledge, it is still amazing. You worked hard, and you can be proud of it.”
“thank you.”
“There will be separate awards for researchers, including the doctor.”
“ha ha ha! “We are content with just a vacation.”
“haha! All right. I will give separate instructions, so please give all researchers who participated in this project a fifteen-day vacation. I heard that you have been so busy that you haven’t been able to go home properly, so please take this opportunity to relax and rest with your family. “They tell us to freely use Jeju Island’s Jeongjeong Resort and the newly created Yugu Resort.”
“haha! Thank you.”
“You say all kinds of things. Are you thankful? We are grateful. However, please pay more attention to security. “All kinds of flies will probably stick to it.”
“All right.”
“Director Cho.”
“Yes, Mr. President.”
“You know what I’m going to say, right?”
“Yeah, I know. “Even so, I am watching the trends in the UK and France with interest these days because they are suspicious.”
“Yes, England in particular also spied on the United States. For them, if they can secure the technology, they will do whatever it takes. Because that was actually the case.”
At least when it came to atomic bombs, Britain was a pretty unfair country.
It was the first country on earth to attempt to develop an atomic bomb, and in fact, during Churchill’s war in 1943, he negotiated with Roosevelt and had his country’s research personnel join the Manhattan Project.
And in 1944, by signing the secret Hyde Park Agreement, the United States even promised to share the results of the Manhattan Project with Britain.
However, Lee Kang-cheol appeared in the middle and interfered.
He suggested to Roosevelt that he should reduce the number of countries possessing nuclear weapons as much as possible or delay the creation of states possessing nuclear weapons.
Accordingly, the United States suffered an unprecedented setback.
Even Britain put out its flippers, saying that it could not provide nuclear weapons technology.
It was the same in original history.
When Britain asked to provide technology according to the agreement, Truman refused.
Britain was devastated, but since Roosevelt, a party to the agreement, was dead, there was nothing they could do.
The United States goes one step further and even enacts laws.
The Atomic Energy Act of 1946, commonly known as the McMahon Act, was enacted and banned by law.
In short, it was the biggest stab in the back of all time.
Of course, this is not the UK that will sit still.
It’s a country that’s level-headed even if it’s rotten, and has excellent basic technology.
Britain, sacrificed to evil, eventually succeeded in testing an atomic bomb in Australia in 1952 by adding data stolen by Klaus Fuchs, a rare spy, and its own technology, and also succeeded in developing a hydrogen bomb in 1957.
However, this time, Lee Kang-cheol’s interference came first, and Klaus Fuchs was also arrested before handing over the data, so it will take some more time.
“ruler! Then let’s end our report on the hydrogen bomb here. “Minister Goh also had a hard time observing.”
“no.”
“Okay, let’s do this. “Only the people I mentioned in advance will remain, and we will hold another meeting in 30 minutes.”
“Thank you for your effort.”
30 minutes later, Secretary-General Kim Ho-jin, Kim Gyu-sik, National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-hyun, and Ko Seok-man gathered in Lee Kang-cheol’s office.
“Is everyone gathered?”
“yes.”
“Do you know why I asked to see you? “This is what Secretary Ko heard from General MacArthur this time.”
“Yes, it has been delivered.”
There is only one reason why they got together again.
This is to discuss MacArthur’s request to forgive Japan.
Anyway, MacArthur is MacArthur.
MacArthur’s request cannot be ignored.
“under! What on earth is that guy? “You’re just going to quietly return to your hometown, right?”
“Who isn’t?”
“Anyway, now that the talk has been made, we also need to decide on a policy. “It’s something that keeps coming up.”
“What you said is correct, Minister-General.”
“Ha, yes. First of all, I want to hear what Teacher Woosa says. “What do you think?”
Lee Kang-cheol’s words focused the audience’s attention on Kim Gyu-sik.
Clearly, Kim Gyu-sik’s opinion was important in this case.
This is because Kim Gyu-sik himself fought against Japan throughout his life and was a person who could represent the Provisional Government.
“hmm… … .”
Kim Gyu-sik did not open his mouth for a while with a heavy expression.
He seemed to have a lot on his mind.
After a few minutes, Kim Gyu-sik opened his mouth.
“Honestly, my feelings are… … .”
“Please speak comfortably. “For now, we are trying to sort out our positions among ourselves.”
“All right. To be honest, my heart still cannot forgive Japan. I have fought against them all my life and witnessed their atrocities. “I don’t know if it’s because I’m older, but I still hate Japan.”
“okay.”
“Perhaps other comrades feel the same way. Comrades were shot to death, starved to death, captured and tortured to death… … . I lived only seeing those things. “We are the people who lived that way.”
“… … .”
Now a better world has come, but that doesn’t mean the pain of the past goes away.
He wandered the plains of Manchuria and mainland China while enduring pain that would be difficult for ordinary people to endure.
There is no way Japan will be easily forgiven.
And this was a pain and experience that the expeditionary force from the future could not understand.
That’s why Lee Kang-cheol asked to listen to Kim Gyu-sik first.
At least with regard to this matter, the opinions of the expeditionary force had no choice but to be pushed to the back burner.
Perhaps those with the largest stake are those who fought for independence.
As expected, it is still too early to forgive Japan.
“But.”
“yes?”
Kim Gyu-sik’s mouth opened quietly again.
“However, we cannot live forever stuck in the past. As MacArthur said, although Japan’s reconstruction is being delayed, Japan is still a large country with a population of 70 million. Moreover, excluding China, it is the closest neighboring country.”
“… … .”
“Now that our government has defined the two Chinese countries as our biggest potential enemies, it is not desirable to continue to treat those countries. Considering these political and economic perspectives, it is also true that it is right to forgive Japan and establish normal diplomatic relations at some point. What MacArthur said is not completely wrong.”
“Hoo? “Do you think so?”
“Yes, my heart cannot forgive Japan. This will be the same when I die. But in my head, I think we have to forgive Japan someday.”
“The opposition will be enormous. Needless to say, those who fought for independence, including those in the Provisional Government, and the majority of the people will also oppose it. Teacher Woosa doesn’t know how fierce the opposition was when diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan were established in history. They say there was no uproar or anything like that.”
“So?”
“yes? “So you mean that?”
“So what happened in the end? Could the future situation be such that we could continue to live without Japan, which was once an economic powerhouse that threatened the United States?”
“… … .”
“No, right? I also studied something that happened in the future. “It was the Cold War, but wasn’t it an environment in which there was no choice but to establish diplomatic ties with Japan?”
“Yes, that’s right. But this time things are completely different. Our modern country is a great country. To put it bluntly, the proportion of domestic demand is increasing day by day, so there is no reason to be so dependent on external trade. At least financially, there isn’t much to regret. “Even though we may be late in establishing diplomatic ties, we are carrying out at least some economic exchanges.”
In its original history, Korea shook as if hit by a typhoon depending on the external trade environment, and at other times had sunny spring weather.
This was all due to the small proportion of domestic demand in the economy.
Korea’s share of domestic demand barely exceeded 60%.
As a result, if the external environment deteriorated even slightly, the country’s economy ran wild, and if major export destination countries made loud noises, the country had to bow its head.
On the other hand, other major countries did not.
In the United States, it was in the low 80% to over 90%, and in China and Japan, it was around the mid 80%.
European countries were also around 80% on average.
Among OECD countries, Korea’s share of domestic demand was particularly low, so it was impossible to make a big fuss about it.
No matter how big or small, everyone was a valuable market.
But not now.
As population and territory grew dramatically, the proportion of domestic demand also increased.
In addition, due to the advanced technology of the original material, there were an overwhelming number of products made in Korea that had no choice but to be purchased even if they were unpleasant.
To put it bluntly, now even if we are friendly with any other country, it will not have a significant impact on the country’s economy.
But Kim Gyu-sik still shook his head.
“No, Mr. President. We are in a position to rule the country. We have to think differently from the general public. If you think it is beneficial to the country and right, I think you should pursue it even if there is opposition from some. “Isn’t that right?”
“… … .”
That’s obvious.
“This is something I have always thought about, but it seems that the President and those in the current government tend to think too much about public sentiment. I think you all have an obsession with coming from a comfortably developed future. So, because we feel sorry for those of us who suffered at the hands of the Japanese, we tend to lower our voices in these cases.”
“… … .”
It was also true.
Because that kind of sentiment was secretly dominating the expedition team.
“But you don’t have to. National sentiment? Of course it’s important. However, this means that if you think it is right, you must keep the country in mind and persevere in pushing forward, even if it means persuading the opposition at times. Forgiving Japan? What do you guys think? It is currently a market of 70 million. And they say it will exceed 100 million in the future? Are you thinking of giving up on that market?”
“That’s not true.”
“It’s like that politically. Things with China will end very badly in the end. Meanwhile, we continue to be enemies with our other neighbor, Japan? “Isn’t this right?”
“You are correct.”
“In conclusion, here are my thoughts. Of course not right away. There is a presidential election, and even considering public sentiment, I think it is a little early. However, I think it would be a good idea to gradually improve relations with Japan after the Allied Supreme Command is disbanded at the end of next year. Above all! Aren’t we the ultimate winners? “Opposition will not be as extreme as you think compared to the world you were in.”
“… … .”
The meeting on this day was concluded with the words of Kim Gyu-sik.
After the Allied Supreme Command was disbanded, relations gradually improved, but considering the situation, they officially established diplomatic relations.
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