hankyoreh

North Korea’s June 6 offer of talks with Seoul marks a new stage in inter-Korean relations. Pyongyang referred to a complete restoration of ties, including the resumption of operations of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, tourism to Mt. Keumgang and reunions between separated families. This could be a turning point in improving chilly inter-Korean relations. And the greater likelihood now that talks of some form will take place between Pyongyang and Washington means that dialogue truly is entering full swing on the Korean Peninsula.

The offer came just a day before a two-day summit between the US and China, to be held on June 7 and 8. This suggests that Pyongyang is taking actual steps to back up the message special envoy Choe Ryong-hae sent during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jin-ping on May 24. At the time, Choe delivered a personal message from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and said that Pyongyang was hoping for dialogue with the other countries involved in Korean Peninsula issues, including a resumption of the six-party talks on its nuclear program. Xi now appears certain to call on Washington to enter dialogue with Pyongyang during his summit meeting with US President Barack Obama. It is merely a matter of working out the right pace and scope, depending on the outcome of the talks.

In terms of inter-Korean relations, this offer is an excellent opportunity to make a breakthrough. At the moment, there is such a total lack of interaction between the two sides that the Kaesong Complex is in danger of closing down permanently. With its offer, Pyongyang may have been expressing its hope to return cooperation and traffic levels seen before the May 24 measures adopted by Seoul in 2010 after the sinking of the ROKS Cheonan warship. But the gulf may be too wide for everything to be returned to normal over the course of just a handful of meetings. The Mt. Keumgang tourism venture in particular has been shuttered so long that there are many practical issues with getting it moving again.

Another problem is North Korea’s failure to show any progress on the matter of denuclearization. The issues affecting the peninsula cannot be resolved completely without a solution on this issue. Pyongyang needs to pay close attention to the determined stance of Seoul, Washington, and even Beijing on this matter. A resolution to the nuclear issue must be the ultimate goal of any talks on peninsular concerns.

The offer from Pyongyang was so broad in its scope that it behooves Seoul to respond with its own sweeping recalibration of inter-Korean relations. It seems appropriate that the South Korean government responded by proposing minister-level talks. As a way of moving things forward, it is also worth considering working out larger principles through minister-level talks on major issues such as the Kaesong Complex and Mt. Keumgang tourism, rather than puttering around at the working level. Once these larger issues have been addressed, it will then be possible to consider specific individual matters on a case-by-case basis. And if authorities can broaden their focus to include not only a restoration of relations before the May 24 measures but ideas for resolving conflicts fundamentally through denuclearization and a peace agreement, that would just be icing on the cake.

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