ED Hope for better ties
Two Koreas should resume dialogue for peace
South and North Korea reconnected their severed cross-border communication lines Tuesday, raising cautious hopes for the resumption of inter-Korean dialogue as well as the stalled denuclearization talks with Washington.
The move came 13 months after the North cut all communication lines with the South to protest North Korean defectors sending propaganda leaflets into the reclusive country.
The reconnection was in accordance with an agreement between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The presidential office said the two leaders agreed on the restoration of the communication lines after exchanging several personal letters over the past three months. It added Moon and Kim also agreed to seek to restore mutual trust and promote reconciliation between the two Koreas.
We welcome the agreement and hope for better inter-Korean ties. We also have cautious optimism that the North will soon return to the negotiating table to discuss denuclearization with the United States.
During their first face-to-face summit in Washington, D.C., in May, Moon and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed to resolve the North Korean nuclear problem through dialogue and diplomacy. Notably, they acknowledged previous agreements, including the Singapore statement issued by Kim and then U.S. President Donald Trump during their historic summit in June 2018.
However, the Kim regime has yet to accept the Biden administration's offers for dialogue. It should no longer drag its feet. The longer the deadlock remains, the harder it becomes to find a solution to the nuclear showdown with the U.S. That's why we call on the North to embrace U.S. overtures sooner rather than later.
If that is difficult, Pyongyang can first start talking with Seoul to rebuild trust and ease tension on the Korean Peninsula. Then the two sides can boost inter-Korean exchanges and cooperation. The starting point could be the South's humanitarian assistance to help the North tackle the chronic food shortage and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Through this, the two Koreas can improve their relations and move toward peace, reconciliation and prosperity.
Inter-Korean detente will certainly make it easier for the North to negotiate with the U.S over sanctions relief in return for denuclearization. If Pyongyang keeps demanding that Washington first lift major sanctions before starting the denuclearization process, it will not see a breakthrough. Thus, the North had better take a flexible approach. As such, Washington needs to provide more incentives to lure Pyongyang back to talks.
Against this backdrop, President Moon should play a more active role in brokering dialogue between the U.S. and North Korea. It will be Moon's last chance to promote his much-touted “peace process” on the peninsula before his term ends in May 2022. However, he should not seek another grandstanding event only to help the ruling Democratic Party of Korea win next year's presidential election.