Handshake marks history for Koreas
GOYANG, REPUBLIC OF KOREA • With a step over a cracked slab of concrete, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made history Friday by crossing over the world’s most heavily armed border to greet his rival, South Korean President Moon Jae-in, for talks on North Korea’s nuclear weapons. Kim then invited Moon to cross briefly north with him.
Those small steps must be seen in the context of the last year — when the U.S., its ally South Korea and the North seemed on the verge of war as the North unleashed a torrent of weapons tests — but also in light of the long history of the rivals, who fought one of last century’s bloodiest conflicts and even today occupy a peninsula that’s still technically in a state of war.
It was all smiles Friday as Moon led Kim by hand along a red carpet into South Korean territory, where schoolchildren placed flowers around their necks.
Beyond the surface, it’s still not clear whether the leaders can make any progress in closed-door talks on the nuclear issue, which has bedevilled U.S. and South Korean officials for decades. North Korea’s nuclear and missile tests last year likely put it on the threshold of becoming a legitimate nuclear power. North Korea claims it has already risen to that level.
Kim’s news agency said that the leader would “openheartedly” discuss with Moon “all the issues arising in improving inter-Korean relations and achieving peace, prosperity and reunification of the Korean peninsula” in a “historic” summit. It’s the first time a North Korean leader has crossed south of the Demilitarized Zone since the Korean War ended in 1953.
The greeting of the two leaders was planned to the last detail. Moon stood near the Koreas’ dividing line, moving forward the moment he glimpsed Kim appearing on the northern side. They shook hands with the border line between them, and took ceremonial photos.
Nuclear weapons will top the agenda, and Friday’s summit will be the clearest sign yet of whether it’s possible to negotiate those weapons away from a country that has spent decades building its bombs despite crippling sanctions and international opprobrium.
Expectations are generally low, given that past socalled breakthroughs on North Korea’s weapons have collapsed amid acrimonious charges of cheating and bad faith.
Skeptics have long said that the North often turns to interminable rounds of diplomacy, giving it time to perfect its weapons and win aid for unfulfilled promises.
Advocates of engagement say the only way to get a deal is to do what the Koreas will try Friday: Sit down and see what’s possible.