[Editorial] South and North need to set a firm date for this summit as early as possible

Posted on : 2018-08-14 17:05 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon (left) shakes hands with Ri Son-gwon
South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon (left) shakes hands with Ri Son-gwon

South and North Korea reached an agreement at high-level talks in Panmunjeom on Aug. 13 to hold a third summit in Pyongyang during September. While Pyongyang was firmly set as the venue, the date was vaguely placed sometime during the month. Given the current deadlock between Pyongyang and Washington, Seoul initially hoped for a summit in late August or early September; indeed, the two sides seemed to agree right up until the day before the announcement that the summit should take place in that time frame.

But the end result was only a halfway-defined agreement. While it’s a very positive step for the two sides to hold a fall summit in Pyongyang as they agreed upon in their Panmunjeom Declaration on Apr. 27, it is disappointing that the date has been pushed back farther than anticipated.

It remains unclear whether the failure to set a specific summit date was simply the result of North Korea’s internal situation – or whether it had to do with the current state of inter-Korean and North Korea-US relations. It may not be anything to worry about if the reason had to do with practical difficulties in holding another major event ahead of the 70th anniversary of the North Korean state’s foundation on Sept. 9. But if the reason was something else, the upcoming diplomatic schedule is such that the North’s stalemate with the US could end up dragging out.

For an inter-Korean summit to add some needed momentum to progress in the North Korea-US talks, it needs to take place before the UN General Assembly session beginning on Sept. 18. In that case, we might be able to see South and North Korea and the US – or the three of them plus China – declaring an end to the Korean War during the UN General Assembly’s September session.

If the summit is pushed back after the UN General Assembly, on the other hand, a summit will have less opportunity to help fuel a breakthrough in the current situation. In their follow-up talks, South and North Korea will need to set a firm date for this summit “within September” that is as early as possible.

In addition to deciding the venue and date for the summit, the agenda for these high-level talks also included a review of progress on implementing the Panmunjeom Declaration’s terms. But neither side referred to any specific agreements on the matter in their joint press statement. In addition to advancing its relationship with the US, North Korea has also called for developments in inter-Korean relations – and economic cooperation in particular.

The situation now suggests the two sides may have failed to bridge their differences in opinion. In discussing the issues raised at the summit, the North’s representative at the talks, Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland Chairman Ri Son-gwon, troublingly suggested that other agenda areas on the schedule could be in for difficulties if those issues are not resolved. This raises the question of whether the failure to make progress in the cooperation-related areas at the talks had to do with this. We would like to see a more detailed explanation of these issues from the South Korean government.

Pushing the date of the third inter-Korean summit back until after mid-September would also make things more complicated in terms of Seoul’s response approach. It’s impossible to stake everything on a summit when it’s over a month away. This means Seoul has to prepare duly for the summit while looking for other things that South Korea can do in the present situation. Allowing the current stalemate to persist between North Korea and the US is not good for them or for South Korea. Seoul needs to channel more efforts into its mediator role in encouraging progress in Pyongyang and Washington’s talks on denuclearization and a war-ending declaration – regardless of whatever is going on with the inter-Korean summit schedule.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]

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