May 30, 2018
By Emma Chloe Caamaño
Managing Editor
On April 27, Chairman of the Workers’ Party of Korea and Supreme Leader of North Korea Kim Jong-un stepped into South Korea. This was the first time since the end of the Korean War, which lasted from 1950 to 1953, that a North Korean leader entered Southern territory. These few steps carry a great deal of historical significance, as the 2018 inter-Korean summit became the third ever inter-Korean summit and the first in 11 years.
The summit took place after both nations engaged in discussions relating to the 2018 Winter Olympics. North Korea then gave an official invitation for the summit to remove all nuclear weapons from the Korean Peninsula and within a year pursue a formal end to the Korean War.
Junior Lauren Ferschweiler, who is in Advanced Placement United States History, said this is a monumental time in history.
“North Korea and South Korea together have a population of more than 75 million, meaning that any sort of confrontation between the conjoined countries could be extremely disastrous for many people’s lives,” Ferschweiler said. “Not to mention a threat of North Korea having new nuclear weapons [which are] capable of harming many.”
Although an armistice brought about a cease-fire in 1953, the conflict of the Korean War had no official end because neither country could agree to a formal peace treaty. In exchange for vowing to negotiate a treaty, North Korea has been asked to dismantle its nuclear program.
Junior Konrad Skwara, who is also in AP U.S. History, said a formal peace treaty is necessary to put an official end to the Korean War.
“This means that the North and South will eventually start [living] peacefully,” Skwara said. “Constant aggression is over and the peace could branch to new topics, new policies and new relationships.”
Both Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have agreed to work towards improving inter-Korean relations by opening a liaison office in Kaesong, North Korea and by arranging a reunion later in the year for families that were separated by the war. Furthermore, Moon plans to visit Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, in the fall.
Both leaders have also agreed to push for a trilateral conference with the U.S. or a four-party assembly including China. These conferences would take place with the incentive of ending the Korean War and replacing the armistice with a peace treaty.
Ferschweiler said due to Kim’s previous threats, it is essential for the U.S. to take a stand in the international negotiation.
“Throughout American history, the nation has continually asked itself the question, to get involved or to stay out of it, but I think in this case it’s important for America to support South Korea,” Ferschweiler said. “America needs to get involved, especially since threats have already been made on our own nation’s safety.”
With the U.S. now involved, President Donald Trump’s administration, with China’s help, has tightened sanctions on North Korea and has insisted that Kim make progress in disassembling his nuclear arsenal before the “maximum pressure” campaign lightens up.
Last year, Kim traded threats of nuclear war with Trump. However, he has now proposed a meeting with Trump, saying he would give up his nuclear arsenal for the right cost.
Skwara said there is reason to distrust North Korea.
“I think this is a brand new, productive step. However, I still have doubts and still am skeptical,” Skwara said. “There are many reasons to not trust Kim Jong-un, but the pace of peace between North and South Korea shouldn’t be stopped.”
A meeting between Moon and Trump held in the oval office on May 22 was meant to be a time for the two presidents to create a strategy for dealing with Kim and working towards the goal of complete denuclearization. Nevertheless, after Pyongyang threatened to pull out of a summit to be held in Singapore on June 12, this became more of a crisis forum.
AP U.S. History teacher Mr. Tessalone said he is skeptical of both Kim and Trump. He said he is waiting to see what materializes from future summits.
“I’m also not totally clear about what North Korea totally wants,” Tessalone said. “Both have reputations of being a little unpredictable, and I think this summit has caught people by surprise, and that could be owed to their unpredictable personality and nature.”
However, it was not Pyongyang that declared the Singapore summit canceled but Trump, who announced in a May 24 letter to Kim that he would not meet with him. This was because a North Korean vice minister of foreign affairs referred to Vice President Mike Pence as a “political dummy,” offending both Trump and his administration.
Nevertheless, Trump signaled in the letter that direct talks with Kim could still occur, writing, “I felt a wonderful dialogue was building up between you and me, and ultimately, it is only the dialogue that matters. Someday, I look very much forward to meeting you.”
Tessalone said even if the summit were to occur in the near future, complete denuclearization in North Korea would not occur immediately. Rather, Tessalone said the topic would need to be be discussed and debated over a series of months.
“I think it’s too big of an issue to deal with in one summit, and I think it is probably going to have to be a series of talks,” said Tessalone.
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