On the 27th of April 2018, something monumental occurred, North Korean leader Kim-Jong Un crossed the DMZ line bordering the two Koreas to be greeted by Moon Jae-In. The two shook hands across the border before Kim stepped over, thus entering South-Korean territory. He then gestured to Moon to do the same but this time they held hands and crossed together. Kim-Jong Un is the first official leader to have entered South-Korea for decades.
This meet and greet of the Korean leaders are to officially declare the end of the Korean war- a war which has been going, on paper, for more than half a century. Let me explain, when the North Korean army was pushed back to North-Korea by American forces after South-Korea had been invaded, all the forces included in the fighting; The Democratic People’s Republic of China, the USA, North Korea and South Korea came to terms on an armistice which declared that there would be a ceasefire bringing the conflict to an end. However, this was just a ceasefire which meant that the war hadn’t really come to an end and that technically, they were all still at war with each other.
Of course, this summit wasn’t just for the declaration of the end of the Korean war, it also allowed for the discussion of the possibility of denuclearizing the entire Korean peninsula. They discussed this over their walk and their private 30 minute chat. Some South-Koreans are still sceptical of all this and refuse to believe that this will reap any sort of good, but many are already praising the two sides for coming together. https://twitter.com/_AuroraRain_/status/989831058081411072. The two parties have signed the “Panmunjom Declaration,” by doing so they agree to formally end the korean war and commit to the denuclearization of both countries. All we can do is hope that these countries honour this pact and change the course of history for the korean peninsula.
