By Kim Yoo-chul
Tuesday's high-level military talks between the two Koreas didn't produce any substantial results; participants said they only had “constructive” discussions on how to ease decades of confrontation.
But one meaningful accomplishment, according to Seoul officials, Wednesday, is the two Koreas concurred on reducing military tension based on mutual trust through upcoming working-level meetings
Sources said the two Koreas will soon discuss a detailed timeline on when and how to pull out troops from some guard posts near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) “on a trial basis.” If this is implemented smoothly, they will try to vacate all guard posts and eventually remove them.
“I have no specific ideas on how and when that will happen because of the complexity of the issue. Assuming that backup measures in accordance with the Panmunjeom Declaration go through without any problems, then I think a possible disarmament move by the North which will eventually include both the DMZ and the Joint Security Area will follow,” said Moon Seung-mook, head of the unification strategy center at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy.
“The South wants to see quick progress, while the North thinks removing soldiers from the DMZ and JSA is a time-consuming task,” he said. The North's official Korean Central News Agency reported the two Koreas discussed ways on easing military tension; however, it didn't say anything about an agreement between them to disarm their troops inside the DMZ.
The DMZ was established after the Korean War ended in an armistice. Stretching across the 260-kilometer width of the Korean peninsula, the approximately 3.2 kilometer-wide piece of land is bounded on both sides by several lines of barbed wire fence, and one of the largest concentrations of soldiers and artillery in the world.
South Korea operates about 80 border-guard posts overlooking the DMZ while the North has around 160. Guards are kept on 24-hour standby with permission to open fire with heavy machine guns.
For the Moon administration, disarming the DMZ and JSA would be a big and unprecedented step toward reunification, said Seoul officials.
“My understanding is that the South will send additional messages to the North asking Pyongyang to provide action plans relating to disarmament in the heavily fortified border areas as soon as possible because South Korea is talking with China and the United States to establish a timeline to end the Korean War,” said one military analyst in Seoul.
Earlier, the two Koreas said they had restored military communication lines. The measures come after Pyongyang began dismantling key facilities at a satellite launching station in fulfillment of a commitment made by its leader Kim Jong-un at a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Singapore held June 12.