2 Koreas sign landmark reconciliation pact

[Praxius]

2 Koreas sign landmark reconciliation pact

Clasping each other's hands and then raising a toast on Thursday, the leaders of the two Koreas celebrated the signing of a historic reconciliation pact to end a decades-long Cold War standoff between their countries. North Korean President Kim Jong-il and his South Korean counterpart Roh Moo-hyun agreed Thursday to replace a 1953 armistice with a new permanent peace treaty. Under the previous ceasefire agreement, struck 54 years ago, North and South Korea were technically engaged in war until now. Thursday's pledge commits the leaders of both countries to push for a final peace settlement. Kim and Roh reached the bilateral agreement at the end of a rare three-day summit in the North Korean capital Pyongyang. It was only the second time in seven years that the leaders of both countries met to discuss relations in the divided Korean Peninsula. "The South and North shared the view that they should end the current armistice regime and establish a permanent peace regime," the pact said. North vows disarmament by Dec. 31 They "agreed to closely co-operate to end military hostility and ensure peace and easing of tension on the Korean peninsula," according to a joint statement. In order to achieve official peace, however, North and South Korea will need to seek the backing of the other parties that battled in the conflicts — China and the United States. South Korea never signed the 1953 Korean War armistice ending the war. U.S. President George W. Bush had said he would discuss the prospect of accepting the peace treaty, but that it would first depend on Pyongyang fully honouring its promise to scrap its nuclear weapons program. Thursday's settlement between the North and South came a day after the two countries and four other nations reached a joint agreement in Beijing for Pyongyang to disable its main nuclear facilities by Dec. 31. The deal also requires the North to declare all its nuclear activities and submit to U.S.-led progress inspections. Pyongyang shut down its sole operating reactor at Yongbyon in July after the U.S. reversed its hard-line policy against the regime, the first concrete progress from years of talks that also have included China, Japan, Russia and South Korea. Boost economic ties But the Koreas accord Thursday cited the nuclear issue in a single sentence, saying the North and South would make "joint efforts to ensure the smooth implementation" of previous accords from the six-nation arms talks "for the solution of the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula." The Koreas also pledged to boost economic ties, open regular cargo railway service along restored tracks crossing the Demilitarized Zone and create a joint fishing zone on their disputed sea frontier. They will also open an air corridor between Seoul and North Korea's tallest peak, Mount Paektu, for tours to the site that is sacred to all Koreans. The sides also agreed to send a joint cheering squad for the Koreas to next year's Beijing Olympics and also increase reunions between relatives separated by the border. Since the first summit between the Koreas in June 2000, some 18,000 Koreans from separated families have met through face-to-face or video reunions.

Well that's a pile of good news for once.

[Praxius]

Update:

S. Korea to brief U.S., others on possible peace deal

South Korea sent special envoys to the United States and other countries Friday to brief them on a new deal with North Korea calling for multinational talks to formally end the Korean War. South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il agreed Thursday to seek a meeting of parties to the ceasefire that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, with the aim of signing a permanent peace treaty. That would require the participation of the U.S. and China, who also fought in the conflict. "Before us lies the task of establishing a peace regime on the Korean peninsula, which our people yearn for,'' Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung told reporters Friday. "In this regard, special government envoys were dispatched to the United States, Japan, China and Russia.'' U.S. President George W. Bush told Roh last month that he was willing to formally end the war, but insisted it could only happen after Pyongyang's total nuclear disarmament. Pyongyang shut down its sole operating reactor at Yongbyon in July after the U.S. reversed its hard-line policy against the regime, the first concrete progress from years of talks that also have included China, Japan, Russia and South Korea. North Korea committed this week to going further than ever before in scaling back its nuclear ambitions by pledging at arms talks with the U.S. and other regional powers to disable its main nuclear facilities and declare all its programs by the end of the year. In return, the U.S. offered to "begin the process'' of eventually removing Pyongyang from its blacklist of countries sponsoring terrorism and lift other sanctions. On Friday, however, the North's official news agency claimed the U.S. firmly promised to lift the sanctions and remove North Korea from the list. The inter-Korean summit accord calls for an expansion of economic co-operation, including establishing a new special economic zone on North Korea's west coast. The two nations also agreed to accelerate the development of an existing joint industrial park in the North Korean border city of Kaesong and start a regular cargo rail service there. Roh instructed the cabinet on Friday to draw up specific plans on implementing the accord, spokesman Cheon Ho-seon said. Sensitive issue Cheon also said Roh had raised the sensitive issue of former South Korean soldiers and civilians believed to be held in North Korea, but could not reach agreement with Kim because their positions were far apart. According to South Korean government statistics, 545 soldiers captured during the 1950-53 Korean War are believed to be still alive in the North, along with 480 abductees taken by the communist nation — mostly fishermen whose boats have strayed across the border since the war's end. The North claims there are no prisoners or abductees in the country, insisting people there have gone voluntarily. The South's defence minister also said that Roh proposed ways of "peacefully using'' the four-kilometre-wide Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas but the North's leader rejected the offer, saying it's "too early'' to do so.

Well one good thing that can come out of this, is many of the US troops still stationed in that area would no longer be needed and could go home.

But one thing I don't get:

North Korea committed this week to going further than ever before in scaling back its nuclear ambitions by pledging at arms talks with the U.S. and other regional powers to disable its main nuclear facilities and declare all its programs by the end of the year. In return, the U.S. offered to "begin the process'' of eventually removing Pyongyang from its blacklist of countries sponsoring terrorism and lift other sanctions.

So if they stop production and the seeking of nuclear technology, they will be removed from the list of "countries sponsoring terrorism?"

How does a country trying to build nuclear technology, be that weapons or energy, for their own use, be automatically labeled as a country that "sponsors terrorism?" Don't you need to actually sponsor or fund terrorists first, in order to be labeled as such?

And if they are helping terrorists around the world, wouldn't it be logical to ask them to stop doing that to be no longer labeled a sponsor, rahter then just stoppping internal development of resources for your own country?

[grandpa]

Quote by: Praxius Well one good thing that can come out of this, is many of the US troops still stationed in that area would no longer be needed and could go home. So if they stop production and the seeking of nuclear technology, they will be removed from the list of "countries sponsoring terrorism?"

Well, certain talking heads (like Sean Hannity) claimed that he was sponsoring terrorism in other ways, too.

Grqandpa h.

[Chaossaber314]

Quote by: grandpa Well, certain talking heads (like Sean Hannity) claimed that he was sponsoring terrorism in other ways, too. Grqandpa h.

Still, even provided that that was true, how would N.Korea stopping its Nuclear ambitions affect those activities.

[Praxius]

Exactly.

It almost seems like the word Terrorism has just become a rubber stamp and lost all meaning.

As soon as a country does something not approved.... they're labeled either sponsors of terrorism, or the political organization in control is directly a terrorist organization. As soon as they bend and do that one little thing wanted, the label is lifted.

But until then, they are villianized through the corp media and made out to be loose cannons who are a danger to our everyday lives. :rolleyes:

Pretty sick... or sad..... probably both.

[another day]

So kim is wising up to how to play the political game. big deal.

and everyone is falling for it.

"oh i guess he's not so bad"...

learning from the usa I see. I guess he likes more from the us then just hollywood movies.

[tinybear]

Anything the two Koreas sign is like the stuff that Israel & Palestine sign; not worth the paper it's written on. Still, there's cause for celebration in the short term. Enjoy it whilst it lasts folks.

[grandpa]

Quote by: Chaossaber314 Still, even provided that that was true, how would N. Korea stopping its Nuclear ambitions affect those activities.

I see. Perhaps Kim Jong Il won't disarm, or he will be regarded as not disarming. Then we can again get into the issue of hypocrisy, one of my faves.

Kim could always have parroted Ahmadinejad:
"Those whose arms are stained up to the elbow with the blood of other
nations are now accusing us of violating human rights and freedoms. God
willing, we shall drag you to trial."

(SOURCE: CNN.com - U.S.: 'Troubling' details emerge on Iran nuclear program - Feb 1, 2006)

[grandpa]

Quote by: tinybear Anything the two Koreas sign is like the stuff that Israel & Palestine sign; not worth the paper it's written on. Still, there's cause for celebration in the short term.

I'm sure I'll be accused of switching topics, but it seems the US presence in South Korea figures largely into this matter (correct me if I'm wrong, of course).

Grandpa h.