Pyeongchang Olympics lays the groundwork for establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula

Posted on : 2018-02-26 18:28 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
New milestones are achieved in athletic exchanges and the opening of liaison channels
Olympic athletes and spectators enjoy the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympics on Feb. 25. (Yonhap News)
Olympic athletes and spectators enjoy the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympics on Feb. 25. (Yonhap News)

The Pyeongchang Olympics, which came to a close on Feb. 25, there is a growing feeling that the event made a decisive contribution toward the eventual restoration of inter-Korean relations and establishment of peace on the Korean Peninsula thanks to the proactive stances from Seoul and Pyongyang.

The event included new milestones for athletic exchange between the two sides, with North Korea actively responding to Seoul’s “peace Olympics” vision by agreeing to field a unified team for the first time in Olympic history and have the two sides’ athletes enter together for the first time in 11 years. In the process, the liaison channel at Panmunjeom was reopened between South and North, while high-level talks set in motion a full-scale restoration of inter-Korean ties. Land, air, and sea routes were opened between the two sides, providing paths for 500 North Korean delegation members, athletes, and performers to visit the South.

Perhaps the most important achievement was the laying of groundwork for future talks in various areas and stable management of conditions on the Korean Peninsula as two visits by senior North Korean delegations added momentum to the developments in inter-Korean relations. Indirect dialogue took shape between the South and North Korean leaders with the sending of two special envoys from Pyongyang: Supreme People’s Assembly Presidium director Kim Yong-nam – the first North Korean Constitutional head of state to visit the South since Korea’s division – and Workers’ Party Central Committee first vice director Kim Yo-jong, the first visiting member of the North Korean leader’s immediate family. Kim Jong-un’s invitation [for Moon] to visit North Korea also raised the possibility of a third inter-Korean summit.

With the close of the Olympics, Seoul now plans to focus its efforts on carrying forward the momentum of inter-Korean dialogue. In addition to working-level talks toward North Korea’s participation in the Pyeongchang Paralympics, which begin on Mar. 9, follow-up discussions are also likely to be held on efforts toward restoring national homogeneity through joint compilation of the “Great Dictionary of the Korean Language” and collaboration on restoring Manwoldae Palace, promoting civilian and local government interchange in the areas of healthcare, forests, religion, sports, and culture; and humanitarian efforts involving divided families.

“North Korea-US dialogue and other progress in denuclearization will need to be made for additional improvements in inter-Korean relations,” a Ministry of Unification official said.

By Jung In-hwan, staff reporter

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

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories

Most viewed articles