Reference News Network reported on September 26 (by Yao Ximeng)
Recently, the issue of the “Declaration of the End of War” on the Korean Peninsula has once again become a hot topic at the 76th UN General Assembly, and the interaction of all parties has aroused concern.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean President Moon Jae-in spoke at the UN General Assembly on the 21st and once again proposed that the Korean War from 1950 to 1953 should be officially ended. He said: “When the parties involved in the Korean War united to announce the end of the war, I believe that we can make irreversible progress in the denuclearization of (the peninsula) and usher in an era of complete peace.”
The United States welcomes this. In response to South Korea and the United States‘ proposals and calls, North Korea quickly responded.
First, show strength against the United States. According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency, North Korea’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lee Tae-sung said on the 23rd that it is “too early” to sign the “End War Declaration”. Nothing will change”.
It should be said that the first reaction of the DPRK is consistent with the DPRK’s consistent position on the issue of peace, stability and denuclearization of the peninsula. That is to say, the way North Korea deals with the United States cannot soften until the relationship between North Korea and the United States is fundamentally changed.
What’s interesting is that after the DPRK released its first response, on the same day, the Korean Central News Agency issued another more serious response to the conversation.
According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency, the Deputy Minister of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, Kim Yo-jung, stated on the 24th that if South Korea can really “be cautious in words and deeds and refrain from engaging in hostile acts” towards North Korea in the future, North Korea is willing to maintain close communication between North and South. , And constructive discussions on the restoration of relations and development prospects. Kim Yo-jung said that the “end-war declaration” is not “bad,” but it should first check whether the time is right and whether all the conditions are met for relevant discussions.
Two speeches in response to the same incident on the same day, but there is a difference in “water temperature”, revealing what considerations North Korea has?
To the United States, the DPRK’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the “front-line” representative of the DPRK-US talks, reflects North Korea’s strong dissatisfaction with the Biden administration and even the policies of successive U.S. governments toward the DPRK for a long time. North Korea’s response directly pointed to the crux of the Korean Peninsula issue, that is, the United States has no intention of changing its North Korea policy. As long as the United States does not change its systematic hostile policy towards North Korea, whether it is the so-called “end-war declaration” or the peace mechanism on the peninsula, it will be difficult to change the reality of the serious lack of mutual trust between the two sides.
Regarding South Korea, Kim Yu-jung has participated in the interaction between the top leaders of the DPRK and South Korea on many occasions, and has also visited South Korea as a special envoy of Kim Jong-un. Her remarks have more reflected North Korea’s considerations and expectations in North-South relations, and can be regarded as one. Kind of positive response.
Facing the positive signal released by the DPRK, the ROK responded quickly. According to news from South Korea’s Radio International on the 24th, Moon Jae-in said on North Korea’s recent test-fire of ballistic missiles and other assessments that “this is a low-intensity North Korean act of increasing tension.” He believes that North Korea has not closed the door to dialogue. “Although North Korea tested missiles, it did not break its original promise. Instead, it continued to suspend nuclear tests and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests such as nuclear missile tests. This shows that The North Korean side has still opened the door to dialogue.”
Not only is it “magnanimous” in terms of speech, South Korea has also taken practical actions: to provide support to private organizations that promote nutrition and health assistance projects to North Korea. Accordingly, the South Korean government will allocate 10 billion won (approximately RMB 55 million) from the North-South Cooperation Fund to fund relevant organizations to engage in nutrition and health cooperation projects for North Korean children, women, the disabled, and the elderly. The South Korean government will fully undertake Expenses required for the purchase and transportation of materials by the relevant groups.
In just two weeks, the interaction between North Korea and South Korea has gone from continuous missile test to the release of goodwill in the air. The situation on the peninsula is undergoing rapid evolution.
It is worth noting that Moon Jae-in’s term of office will end in early May 2022. In the coming period, it is conceivable that he will focus on how to leave his political legacy in North-South relations. As a president representing the progressives in South Korea, he has repeatedly expressed his strong desire to continue to improve North-South relations in public speeches, and said that he expects to achieve a “reversal” of relations between South Korea and North Korea during the remaining term of his term.
As far as North Korea is concerned, as the relationship between North Korea and the United States cannot start, Moon Jae-in’s remaining term will be an important time window for North Korea to improve its external environment. The proposal to issue a “end-war declaration” may seem remote, but it may become an important catalyst for the evolution of North-South relations. After all, it has been 68 years since the armistice of the Korean War, and the brother-in-law is a kind of “what a painful comprehension” that only the parties involved know. Return to Sohu to see more
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