Seoul: Michael Sandel, a renowned professor at Harvard University, emphasized the necessity for South Korea to tackle political polarization as a prerequisite for exploring peaceful coexistence with North Korea.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Sandel made these remarks during a forum on peace hosted by Seoul's unification ministry. This comes as the Lee Jae Myung administration seeks to mend strained inter-Korean relations and resume dialogue with Pyongyang.

"In a democracy like South Korea, it won't be possible to decide what kind of coexistence with North Korea is possible and desirable without democratic dialogue and debate," Sandel stated. However, he noted that such dialogue and debate are unattainable without addressing the deep and intense polarization that currently exists. He highlighted a connection between the crisis of democracy and the challenges to peaceful coexistence, suggesting three concepts of coexistence: the absence of violence or war, living side by side with mutual respect, and sharing common values as a community.

Sandel pointed out that intensifying competition in education is a factor deepening polarization. He also recognized South Korea's significant achievements, including its economic transformation, successful democracy, and cultural success. Among these, Sandel identified South Korea's democratic achievement as "the most precious" yet "the most precarious."

Touching on issues in U.S. democracy during the second term of U.S. President Donald Trump, Sandel mentioned a recent massive immigration raid on South Korean workers at a battery factory construction site in Georgia, observing that immigration agents treated the workers as if "they were criminals."

Meanwhile, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young emphasized the importance of pursuing efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea. North Korea has characterized inter-Korean ties as those between "two states hostile to each other," rejecting Seoul's offer for talks. Chung stated that priority should be placed on addressing hostility, and transforming into a "peaceful state-to-state" approach would be central to South Korea's North Korea policy.