Moon North Korea policy

What is the Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA), why has it been scrapped, and what are the implications? 

The law was crafted by the previous liberal government in Seoul, which desperately pushed for inter-Korean engagement.

The Yoon administration has opened investigations into two controversial incidents at the border with North Korea under former President Moon Jae-in’s watch.

Two previous National Intelligence Service directors were charged with improperly handling investigations into separate incidents in 2019 and 2020.

Both leaders believed that economics and energy concerns locked their countries into a path of appeasing threatening neighbors.

Conservatives – including President-elect Yoon – argue that the initiative damaged the South Korea-U.S. alliance. But would South Korea really have been better off without President Moon’s peace process?

Less than three weeks before Moon Jae-in leaves office, the leaders of the two Koreas exchanged hand-written letters talking up the efforts of the peace process.

A recent survey finds a majority of Koreans approve of the idea -- even among supporters of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol.

The three countries emphasized the importance of the alliance to cope with North Korea’s missile tests while urging Pyongyang to renew dialogue.

In an interview with news agencies of OANA, South Korean President Moon Jae-in expressed his hope for the U.S. and North Korea to renew talks.

South Koreans increasingly reject reunification with the North amid intensifying hostility and indifference. But inter-Korean relations that prioritize economic ties over reconciliation easily fall prey to global geopolitics.

North Korea is not testing missiles in a bid to entice the U.S. into talks. Pyongyang is honing its missile arsenal as a goal in and of itself.