With both nations upbeat after recent bilateral talks, and sports diplomacy surrounding the Winter Olympics, North Korea has issued a very unusual statement of unity addressed not to South Korea, but to all Koreans across the world.
North Korea called for all Koreans “at home and abroad” to work together on a breakthrough toward unification of the Korean Peninsula, saying it should be done without the help of other countries.
The statement urged a push for bilateral cooperation, and to encourage increased contact and travel between the Koreas. That’s a particularly surprising call, as generally North Korea does not allow its citizens to travel abroad for fear of defection.
The statement did touch of some common topics, including the concern about military tensions, which they attributed to military drills with “outside forces.” The push for the Koreans to work together without outside involvement is clearly directed at the US, though it is somewhat surprising how broad it is given North Korea’s recent attempts to get Russia to mediate talks for them.
Either way, North Korea’s statement clearly is a testament to how upbeat they are after the recent talks in the demilitarized zone, and how hopeful they are that talks starting with them attending the Winter Olympics could well expand into something much bigger.
That said, this is almost certain to provoke a negative response from the US. The Trump Administration wasn’t thrilled with the talks, and has already committed Vice President Mike Pence to the Winter Olympics to undermine North Korea’s diplomatic push.
Has the feel of a NK hearts and minds psyop playing on pan-Korean nationalism, less to effect the Koreans and more to tweak the U.S..
There’s obviously no unilateral forthcoming from the South Korean side, if they want to keep selling cellphones and cars to the U.S..
This is more important than money. I wish them good luck.
Notice that just now Trump has taxed washing machines and solar panels entering the USA and South Korea is already complaining to the WTO.
Trump again. Hmmm.
A unified Korea would be a nuclear armed economic powerhouse.
They might just decide things like foreign and monetary policy for themselves if that were to happen…
China and Japan could come together to stop Korea from doing what the US says it wants.
A couple of defectors are useful propaganda. Any large number becomes “refugees” and is a huge problem, deeply feared in both China and South Korea. None of them WANT the North to allow large scale population movement.
Here the North is “threatening” to give them what they demand, and they really don’t want it. Of course, the North won’t do it either as that would hollow out its society, but still, it is an interesting call to reality on both sides.
I wonder what position the dictator in the north sees for himself in a unified Korea?
I’d give him a palace in Tibet, $10B, some honorific title, along with guaranteed safe travel throughout China and Korea. It would be worth every penny but only if the new Korea did not have nuclear weapons.
I wouldn’t care if it was ‘China’ oriented or not or if there was an agreement that it had to be free of foreign troops. The sad thing is that this would probably be seen as ‘appeasement’ by the small minded hawks. I’d give the military guys in the North a pension. The South has lots of money. Both Russia and China would love to do investments in a unified Korea, I could just hear the braying Neocons saying, ‘tooooo much China, toooo much Russia’.
If unification could happen, there would be safety in numbers for the Korean people. It seems like a long shot but it would be of benefit to the people. There are so many issues that would have to be resolved, it is mind boggling. However, if both sides operate based on good will many things are possible.
No wonder the USA is upset. Peace could prevail!
Kim Jung-Un has already joined his nation to the 122 others in the UN who want to rid the world of nukes. He wants a non-nuclear peninsula, for all Koreans’ safety and Japan too,just as all the neighbors of Israel want a nuke-free area for all of them to live in. The USA is of course the fly in the ointment, just as all the “official” nuke powers are against removing the nukes, although they signed the NPT which pledges to reduce and then remove nukes. Deterrence was the plan in the past, but the USA, of course, wants “first use” and “tiny, usable nukes”, which means an arms race to destruction.
That’s a good start, Rosemerry; joining his nation with the other 122 others in the UN who want to rid the world of nukes is Kim Jong-un’s best idea so far. He does, indeed, want a non-nuclear peninsula, for all Koreans’ safety and Japan as well, just as all of Israel’s neighbors want a nuke-free area wherein all of them can live. The US, of course, is the fly in the ointment, just as “official” nuke powers are against removing the nukes, although they had signed the NPT which pledges to reduce and then remove nukes.
On this I agree .. Deterrence was the plan in the past; but the US, of course, wants “firsr use” and “tiny, usable nukes”, which means an arms race to destruction. The US is both insane and suicidal, if what you said about it is correct. We know the Zionist Entity of Israel’s both insane and suicidal; its “Samson Option” is evidence.
Oh, Koreans of the world
Unite and take over
Koreans of the world
Hand it over
Hand it over
Hand it over
This will never happen. Total fantasy. A unified Korea has no chance. The US has its biggest foreign land base near Soeul . That along with the paranoia of Kim jung un will never give up his power over the North Korean people. It is all propaganda to make him look rational against the evil of Washington DC.
The reason we have conflicts is so that the armaments industry can keep making weapons and profits. Behind them is a significant constituency that feeds off the war industry.
Not everyone owned a slave in the South before the Civil War but the economy was dependent on the plantation. Such is the nature of our military. The budgets keep expanding as do the conflicts throughout the world. So many people are dependent on jobs associated with the military. No one is going to vote to put themselves out of work.
When has the United States initiated any effort at arms reduction since the end of the Cold War?
It has often been speculated why we went to war with Iraq. One of the major reasons was simply to have a war.