Moon North Korea policy

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.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said the U.S., China, and North Korea have agreed to officially end the Korean War “in principle,” but can he initiate the proposal?

Several countries will be impacted by an end-of-war declaration, and the extent of the impact is poorly understood – but likely to be quite limited.

U.S. President Joe Biden has opened the possibility of a diplomatic boycott for the Beijing Winter Olympics, potentially killing the final hope the Moon administration had to see productive results.

South Korea and the U.S. have shown different views on the timing and sequence of an end-of-war declaration, but Seoul implies that significant progress has been made.