North Korea – South Korea relations

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North Korea–South Korea relations
Flag of North Korea   Flag of South Korea
Map indicating location of North Korea and South Korea
     North Korea      South Korea

North Korea–South Korea relations are the political, diplomatic, and military interactions between North Korea and South Korea, from the division of Korea to today.

Contents

[edit] End of Korea under Japanese rule

After the defeat of Japan in World War II, the Korean peninsula was occupied by the Soviet Union in the North and the United States in the South. The dividing line was the 38th parallel.

[edit] Establishment of South Korea

The South Korean history begins with the division of the Korean Peninsula in 1945. A civilian government was established in 1948, beginning the First Republic. Syngman Rhee became the first President of South Korea.

[edit] Establishment of North Korea

North Korea was proclaimed on September 11, 1948, under supervision by the occupying Soviet forces. The Soviets preferred placing in power Korean Communists who had spent the war years in the Soviet Union, rather than the Korean Communist Party. Kim Il-sung was named the head of the North Korean Provisional People's Committee in February 1946. Kim then became Prime Minister, a post which he held until 1972, before becoming President.

[edit] Korean War

Main article: Korean War
  • June 25, 1950 - Korean War begins
  • July 1950 - UN Forces are formed with General Douglass MacArthur as Commander. UN Forces are driven back to Pusan Perimeter.
  • September 1950 - UN Troops make an Amphibious Landing at Incheon. UN Forces soon reach the Manchurian border.
  • November 1950 - Chinese Forces enter the war
  • April 11, 1951 - MacArthur fired
  • July 27, 1953 - Ceasefire Agreement

[edit] Cold War

  • January 21, 1968 - North Korean agents attempt to attack South Korean Blue House
  • July 4, 1972 - Joint Statement
  • 1972 - The first Red Cross talks between North and South Korea are held.
  • August 18, 1976 - Ax murder at Panmunjeom

[edit] Reconciliation

  • 1984 - North Korea's Red Cross provides relief products for South Korean flooding
  • May 1980 - Gwangju Democratization Movement
  • 1988 - 1988 Summer Olympics held in Seoul
  • September 4 to 7, 1990 - First High-level talks, in Seoul
  • March 25, 1991 - First use of unified Korean Unification Flag by unified team at World Table Tennis Competition in Japan
  • May 6, 1991 - Unified team at World Youth Football Competition in Portugal
  • December 13, 1991 - Basic Agreement signed between North and South Korea
  • 1994 - Kim Jong Il takes control of North Korea upon the death of his father Kim Il Sung.
  • June 15, 1999 - Naval conflict at Yeonpyeong

[edit] Sunshine policy

[edit] Six-party talks

Main article: Six-party talks
  • June 29, 2002 - Naval conflict in western coast.
  • July 5, 2006 - North Korea test fires Daepodong 2
  • October 9, 2006 - North Korea nuclear test

[edit] Second Summit in 2007

Main article: Inter-Korean Summit

The June 15, 2000 Joint Declaration that the two leaders signed during the first South-North summit states that they would hold the second summit at an appropriate time. It was originally thought in 2000 that the second summit would be held in South Korea, but that was not to be the case in 2007.

On October 2, 2007, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun walked across the Korean Demilitarized Zone in travelling to Pyongyang for talks with Kim Jong-il. During the visit, there were meetings and discussions.[1][2][3][4]

At the meetings and talks, the two sides have reaffirmed the spirit of the June 15 Joint Declaration and had discussions on various issues related to realizing the advancement of South-North relations, peace on the Korean Peninsula, common prosperity of the Korean people and unification of Korea. On October 4, 2007, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il signed the peace declaration. The document called for international talks to replace the armistice which ended the Korean War with a permanent peace treaty.[5]

[edit] Relations after Inauguration of President Lee Myung Bak of South Korea

 The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (May 2008)

President Lee of South Korea has taken a colder and tougher approach to North Korea. As a result, North Korea cut off much relationships and even communications among the two Korean nations. North Korea even threatened to attack South Korea, causing temporary anxiety in South Korea and on its Stock Market. On Friday July 11, 2008, a North Korean soldier fatally shot a South Korean tourist at a mountain resort in the communist North, prompting the South to suspend the high-profile tour program. This occurred just a few hours before South Korea’s new president intended to propose new talks between the divided countries in order to rekindle strained ties. Even though South Korea strongly demands its own investigation on this tragedy at the site of occurrence, North Korea not only rejected all intentions of the South to investigate but also criticized South Korea for its "inability to control" its tourists away from North Korea's military base, situated only few hundred yards away from the tourist zone. Having placed a CCTV on the entrance to North's military base in which North argues the old female tourist intruded, South Korea demanded the release of video tape; however, North has stated that the CCTV has not been functioning at the time, suggesting intended attempt to simply deceive South and to hide North's faults. South Korean tourists' witness account clearly differs from North Korea's fable: No warning shots were actually fired by the North Korean guards; Shots were actually fired when the sun was clearly up, according to witnesses; Both shots heard with about 10 to 15 seconds interval have hit the tourist, clearing demonstrating the soldier's intention to kill. Also, the tourist, having been filmed on the hotel's CCTV leaving the tourist residence at 4:30 a.m. for a walk, clearly could not have reached the place in which the North Korea claims she was shot at 4:50 a.m., the time North argues she was shot, before sunrise; calculating its distance, according to North's claims, a 53 year old woman walked at a rate of 9 km / hr on sand around water, which exceeds her expected rate of walking or even jogging. According to the tourist company's head—who had traveled to the North to figure out what had happened—said that North Korean officials actually seemed to have been thrown into confusion/consternation (in a flurry) at the tragedy and South's questioning of North Korea. As of July 17, 2008, North Korea has not shown any evidence of humanity or its intentions to cooperate with the South; South Korea banned all tours of North Korea, which served as the main source of income for North Korea in the past ten years. South and North Korea entered a new period of conflict while North diverted its source of help (for example: rice, food, cash) from South Korea to China and the USA, by strongly proving its intention to steadily give up Nuclear weapons, and restoring diplomatic relations with United States of America. Yet, without a doubt, North Korea's shooting of a clear female, old, South Korean tourist, regardless of whether or not the tourist invaded its military zone (it has happened before; no shooting has happened before; the trespassers were only held captive for few minutes or hours until this shooting) must be investigated and must be brought upon international judgment.

Recently, North Korea said it is scrapping all of its agreements with the South because of Seoul hostile attitude.[6] With the deployment of missiles by North Korea[7] relations between both Koreas grew tense. Recently, North Korea warned the South and USA with war if any attempt of shooting down the satellite it plants to launch is seen.[8]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Korean leaders in historic talks, BBC, Tuesday, 2 October 2007, 10:14 GMT
  2. ^ In pictures: Historic crossing, BBC, 2 October 2007, 10:15 GMT
  3. ^ Mixed feelings over Koreas summit, BBC, 2 October 2007, 10:17 GMT
  4. ^ Kim greets Roh in Pyongyang before historic summit, CNN, accessed 2 October 2007
  5. ^ Korean leaders issue peace call, BBC, 4 October 2007, 9:27 GMT
  6. ^ "North Korea tears up agreements". BBC News. 30 January 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7859671.stm. Retrieved on 2009-03-08. 
  7. ^ "N Korea 'deploying more missiles'". BBC News. 23 February 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7905361.stm. 
  8. ^ . BBC News. 3 March 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7931670.stm. Retrieved on 2009-03-08. 

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Flag of North Korea Foreign relations of North Korea
Diplomatic missions · Politics of North Korea
v • d • e
Flag of South Korea Foreign relations of South Korea
Coat of arms of South Korea
Ambassadors · Diplomatic Missions · in South Korea · Politics of South Korea
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