(News Analysis) Summit deal likely to pave way for easing military tension

Posted on : 2007-10-04 15:16 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST

Another landmark inter-Korean deal at the end of the three-day summit revives hopes of easing military tension on the peninsula and making peace take root.

The eight-point agreement between South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and his counterpart Kim Jong-il focuses on laying the gournd for mutual trust between the rival armed forces on the Cold War's last frontier and replacing the armistice with a peace treaty to formally end the 1950-53 Korean War. The two Koreas are technically in the state of war, deploying nearly two million combat-ready troops on each side.

"South and North Korea have agreed to closely cooperate to end their military hostilities and reduce tension and secure peace on the Korean Peninsula," the joint declaration signed by Roh and Kim reads. "South and North Korea oppose any war on the Korean Peninsula and have agreed to abide by a non-aggression obligation."

The leaders went further to produce some tangible measures including the creation of a "special peace and cooperation zone" in the West Sea.

The waters near the disputed border between the two side in the West Sea have long been a flashpoint.

Drawn up by the U.S.-led U.N. Command unilaterally at the end of the Korean War, the Northern Limit Line (NLL) has been the source of bloody inter-Korean naval skirmishes in recent years, as the North insists that the line should be redrawn further south.

The NLL issue has been a deal-breaker in any inter-Korean military talks as recently as in June, when their general-level talks ruptured in the icy mood.

Thursday's summit deal is apparently viewed as a breakthrough in the two Koreas' military relations, analysts here said.

"The agreement is more concrete than expected," Korea University professor Yu Ho-yeol said. "It seems that there have been lots of concessions by each side."

It sets the stage for the second round of their defense ministerial talks to be held in Pyongyang next month.

The first-ever round was held on the South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju in September 2000, three months later the historic summit between then South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and the North Korean leader. The next session has not been held yet, however, amid their frosty military ties.

The defense chiefs, when they meet next month, plan to explore ways of supporting inter-Korean economic cooperation and building military confidence.

But experts caution against hasty optimism, citing the precedent in 2000.

They also raise worries that some agreements including the peace zone will nullify the NLL, which has served as a de-facto sea border, and stir more controversies

SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Yonhap)