The historic visit of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to peace house located at Panmunjom in the demilitarised zone last week and his meeting with the South Korean President Moon Jae-in can be termed as a landmark and a milestone in decades of conflict ridden North-South Korean relations. Kim became the first leader of North Korea to put his feet on the South Korean soil since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
Melting of ice in North-South Korean relations took place when winter Olympics were held in Pyeongchang, South Korea in February this year. On that occasion the North and South Korean teams marched under one flag. The younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during her meeting with the South Korean President handed over to him a letter from her brother urging for an earlier meeting. While the United States, United Nations, China and Japan welcomed the historical peace summit held between the two erstwhile neighbours, both North and South Korea pledged to transform their age old conflict ridden relations as peaceful. The two sides also called for complete denuclearisation and ending the state of war in the Korean peninsula. But, it is not for the first time that North and South Korea expressed their resolve for peace because the earlier inter-Korean summits held in 2000 and 2007 had also raised expectations. Yet critical issues which plague their relations since the division of the Korean peninsula couldn’t be resolved. But, the April 27 summit held between the North Korean leader and the President of South Korea which took place inside South Korea cannot be ruled out as an insignificant step.
For the first time in the history of the Korean conflict, North and South Korea provided a solid road map to proceed for peace and to resolve issues which since the last 65 years are a source of instability and tension in North East Asia. Will the recent summit held in Panmunjom help unleash the process of peace and nuclear free Korean peninsula? Will North Korea agree to dismantle its nuclear arsenal as demanded by the United States? Will the United States accept the demand of Pyongyang to withdraw its forces from South Korea and remove its nuclear umbrella which it has provided to Seoul since long? How the meeting between the US President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expected in coming months will help change the course of history in the Korean peninsula? The South Korean President Moon Jae-in and the North Korean leader are expected to meet in Pyongyang in the fall of this year expected to finalise a peace agreement for the Korean peninsula.
Although it will be difficult for Kim to undo the legacy of his grandfather and father, he is ambitious about being remembered in history
The chain of events which have taken place in the last two months in the U.S-North Korean and North and South Korean relations means a major breakthrough is in offing to mend fences between Pyongyang and Washington. Three factors shape the paradigm shift in the Korean peninsula. First, the dilution of hostility and tension which marked the US-North Korean relations in which American President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un traded personal attacks and insults against each other. Both sides threatened to destroy each other particularly Pyongyang augmented the testing of its long range missiles aimed at the United States.
The turning point in de-escalating tension between United States and North Korea came a month ago when Trump hinted to hold a meeting with the North Korean leader to resolve the nuclear issue. He blamed his predecessors of messing up with the situation in the Korean peninsula. Why there was a change of heart in Donald Trump’s maverick approach vis-à-vis North Korea needs to be examined. The presence of Ivanka Trump on the occasion of winter Olympics held in South Korea and her brief interaction with the younger sister of North Korean leader may have contributed to a thaw in U.S-North Korean relations.
Second, a feeling of Korean nationalism and brotherhood is a contributing factor in mending fences between the two Koreas. The North Korean leader during his meeting with the South Korean President expressed his emotional sentiments and hoped for a peaceful future for the people of the two countries. A write-up entitled, “North Korea The world’s most dangerous talk show” published in The London Economist issue of April 21, 2018 quoted a South Korean official confirming that, “talks about permanent peace agreement and a possible security guarantee for North Korea were on the table for the inter-Korean summit, along with a joint statement about denuclearisation.”
In a joint statement issued after their meeting in demilitarised zone, North Korean leader and the South Korean President agreed to implement all existing agreements and declarations adopted so far; to endeavour to swiftly resolve the humanitarian issues which led to the division of Korea and to implement projects previously agreed in an October 4, 2007 declaration to promote balanced economic growth and joint prosperity. Furthermore, the declaration resolved to transform the demilitarised zone into a peace zone as of May 1 by halting all hostile acts and eliminating their means, including loud speaker broadcasts and the distribution of propaganda leaflets. Most important, the two sides as a sequel to the summit agreed to carry out disarmament in a phased manner and to actively pursue trilateral meetings involving the United States, or quadrilateral meetings involving the United States and China with a view to declaring an end to the War and establishing a permanent and solid peace regime particularly accomplishing common goal of complete denuclearisation and nuclear free Korean peninsula.
The 2018 summit held between North and South Korea is certainly different than the summits of 2000 and 2007 because this time the two sides mean business. Both understand the fact very well that cold war, militarisation, threats and coercion will not yield positive results in terms of the welfare, progress and development of Korean people. Third, although it will be difficult for the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to undo the legacy of his grandfather and his father who wanted an offensive military policy vis-à-vis South Korea and the United States but certainly he is ambitious to have his name in history by making peace with his adversaries.
India and Pakistan must learn lessons from the thaw in inter-Korean relations because permanent hostility and animosity cannot yield positive results. Few months ago, things which were considered to be inconceivable and unthinkable are now a reality as far as breakthrough in North-South Korean ties is concerned. Truly, unification of Korea may be an illusion today, yet, like the collapse of the Berlin wall which eventually unified Germany, the dismantling of the 38th parallel which is considered as the most fortified border between North and South Korea may also be a possible. It all depends on political will and determination on the part of the leadership and people of the two Korea for mending fences which can in the near future transform Korean peninsula as a zone of peace and tranquillity.
The writer is Meritorious Professor of International Relations at the University of Karachi. He can be reached at [email protected]
Published in Daily Times, May 4th 2018.