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| Foreign Affairs Minister Chung Eui-yong speaks during a press conference at the ministry's headquarters in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap |
Seoul, Washington agree on draft of end-of-war declaration
By Kang Seung-woo
The South Korean government's hopes to hold another inter-Korean summit and eventually improve its ties with North Korea on the occasion of the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics is unlikely to be realized, its foreign minister said, Wednesday.
However, he added that South Korea and the United States have practically agreed on a draft version of Seoul's proposed declaration to formally end the 1950-53 Korean War.
"Although the South Korean government had hoped to take advantage of the Beijing Games to gain momentum in normalizing frayed inter-Korean ties, things are virtually running counter to expectations at this moment in time," Foreign Affairs Minister Chung Eui-yong said during a press conference at the ministry's headquarters in Seoul.
In the lead-up to the Winter Olympics starting Feb. 4, the Moon Jae-in administration had sought to use the quadrennial sporting event for momentum to revive stalled talks with North Korea, as he successfully improved ties with Pyongyang through the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018, in which the reclusive state participated, thereby leading to both improved inter-Korean and U.S.-North relations.
As part of Seoul's peace efforts, the South Korean government was speculated to have sought another summit between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the sidelines of the Olympic Games amid hopes that China, the North's lone economic lifeline as well as diplomatic protector, could exert influence on the reclusive state.
But the Olympic participation of ranking North Korean officials, including Kim, has become even less likely as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. South Korean government officials' attendance is also unclear for now, amid increasing U.S. pressure on its allies to boycott the event.
However, Chung stressed that the South Korean government will not give up hope and will seek all available measures to resume the stalled process for creating a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Since President Moon resurrected his proposal for the end-of-war declaration in September, South Korean and U.S. diplomats have met frequently to discuss the issue.
However, there have been no public announcements with regard to the declaration, raising suspicions that the two sides are not exactly on the same page, although this was dispelled by Chung.
"Regarding the end-of-war declaration, South Korea and the U.S. have already shared their understanding on its importance, and the two sides have practically reached an agreement on its draft text," Chung said.
The minister reaffirmed the agreement, noting that he and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed the progress made so far between the allies during the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' Meeting in Liverpool earlier this month.
Although Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's powerful sister, has described the end-of-war declaration as an "admirable idea," Pyongyang has since remained unresponsive on the proposal.
Nevertheless, Chung continues urging the Kim regime to respond positively to it.
"Although North Korea showed a set of prompt, positive responses to the end-of-war declaration, we hope the North will show a more concrete reaction," Chung said, adding that the two Koreas already reached an agreement on the end-of-war declaration in summits held in 2007 and 2018.
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