Major Obstacle to Korea’s Reunification

Seven decades have passed since Korea was divided into the north and the south.

It is a tragedy that Korea, a homogeneous nation which had lived for 5 000 years in one territory with the same blood and one culture, has been suffering national division for such a long period.

What then is the obstacle in the way of Korea’s reunification? In short, it is the US.

In August 1945 when Japan was defeated in the Second World War the US drew a line along the 38^th parallel across the Korean peninsula to artificially divide it into two.

Upset by the aspiration of the Korean people to establish an independent, democratic and unified government, the US enforced separate elections in the south of Korea in 1948 to divide the country permanently.

In June 1950, it egged the south Korean army on to ignite a war against the DPRK, bringing the Korean peninsula into the holocaust of fratricidal war.

In the early 1960s when the tendency towards the reunification in alliance with the north gained momentum in south Korea under the slogan, “Let’s go to the north, come to the south, let’s meet at Panmunjom!” the US instigated military rogue Park Chung Hee to stage the May 16 military coup, putting a spoke in the wheel of the reunification movement of the north and south.

John Allen Dulles, former director of the Central Information Agency, openly said that the most successful of the overseas operations of the CIA during his tenure was the military coup in south Korea.

In the 1970s when the July 4 Joint Statement on achieving national reunification on the principle of independence, peace and great national unity was signed between the north and the south the US came out with the theory of “simultaneous entry into the UN by the north and south of Korea,” clamouring about “two Koreas.”

In the 1980s when the north and south started dialogue through various channels and exchanged art troupes and home-visiting groups, it advocated the “cross recognition” of the north and south and staged the north-targeted Team Spirit joint military drills.

In the 1990s when the Agreement on Reconciliation, Nonaggression, Cooperation and Exchange was adopted between the north and south, it kicked up a racket of the north’s nuclear crisis, hindering the development of inter-Korean relations and the reunification movement.

In the 2000s the north and south held two rounds of historic summit meeting for the first time in the history of Korea’s division and adopted the June 15 Joint Declaration with the ideal of By Our Nation Itself as its gist, and the October 4 Declaration as its action programme. At that time, too, the US pressurized the south Korean authorities to sabotage their implementation.

Whenever a sign of improved relations was shown between the north and south, the Americans would deteriorate the situation on the Korean peninsula and cast a chill over their improvement by waging frenzied war rehearsals.

The US-south Korean joint war exercises have reached the extreme in the new century.

Due to their largest-scale military drills waged throughout last year and skirmishes in the West Sea of Korea, all the scheduled dialogues and exchanges for the reunion of separated families and high-level talks have been suspended.

At the outset of this year the DPRK set forth bold and audacious proposals to open up a broad avenue to the independent reunification in this year of the 70^th anniversary of Korea’s liberation and has taken sincere measures to this end. The US, however, pursues outrageous confrontation policy, driving inter-Korean relations into an irrecoverable catastrophe.

Typical examples are the large-scale Key Resolve and Foal Eagle joint military drills the US has forcibly waged in defiance of the strong protest and denunciation by the international community.

The drills aimed at the removal of the DPRK’s leadership and “occupation of Pyongyang” through sudden preemptive strikes, involved huge forces including the US ground, naval and air force strike groups, several hundred thousand south Korean troops and the US-led combined force, and latest military hardware. This has created grave challenge to north-south relations in Korea which was overflowing with aspiration after reunification at the start of this year.

It stands to no reason to talk about reunification and dialogue where gunfire is rampant.

Whenever the inter-Korean relationship has shown a sign of improvement, the US would act in this way.

It is not accidental that the south Korean media branded the US as a wirepuller of the inter-Korean relations that would go astray whenever they seemed to be improving.

The 70-year-long history of national division clearly shows that the improvement of inter-Korean relations and all the reunification processes have been hindered by the US interference.

The issue of Korea’s reunification is not limited to the region, but is directly related to the world peace and security.

That’s why Korea’s peaceful reunification must be achieved at an early date and the US must stop its moves against it at once.

Let’s Open Up a Broad Avenue to Independent Reunification

“Let the whole nation join efforts to open up a broad avenue to independent reunification in this year of the 70^th anniversary of national liberation!”—this is the slogan put forward by supreme leader Kim Jong Un in his New Year Address for 2015.

In retrospect, seventy years have passed since the Korean nation was divided by outside forces.

In those decades the world has made a tremendous advance and the times have undergone dramatic changes, but the Korean nation has not yet achieved reunification, suffering the pain of division. It is a deplorable fact known to everyone and it is lamentable to everyone. No longer can it bear and tolerate the tragedy of national division that has continued century after century.

Last year the DPRK put forward crucial proposals for improved inter-Korean relations and national reunification and made sincere efforts for their implementation. Its efforts, however, could not bear due fruit owing to the obstructive moves by the anti-reunification forces within and without; instead the north-south relations have been on a headlong rush to aggravation.

It is a steadfast will of the Korean leader that however complicated the situation may be and whatever obstacles and difficulties may stand in its way, Korea will unfailingly achieve national reunification, a lifetime wish of President Kim Il Sung and Chairman Kim Jong Il and the greatest desire of the nation, and build a dignified and prosperous reunified country on this land.

In his address he put forward three tasks to open up this year a broad avenue to independent reunification by concerted efforts of the whole Korean nation.

First, the danger of war should be removed, the tension eased and a peaceful environment created on the Korean peninsula.

The large-scale war games ceaselessly held every year in south Korea are the root cause of the escalating tension on the peninsula and bringing the danger of nuclear war to the Korean nation. It is needless to say that there can be neither trustworthy dialogue nor improved inter-Korean relations in such a gruesome atmosphere in which war drills are staged against the dialogue partner.

To cling to nuclear war drills against the fellow countrymen in collusion with aggressive outside forces is an extremely dangerous act of inviting calamity.

The DPRK will resolutely react against and mete out punishment to any acts of provocation and war moves that infringe upon its sovereignty and dignity.

The south Korean authorities should discontinue all war moves including the reckless military exercises they conduct with foreign forces and choose to ease the tension and create a peaceful environment on the Korean peninsula.

The United States, the very one that divided the Korean nation into two and has imposed the suffering of national division upon it for 70 years, should desist from pursuing the anachronistic policy hostile towards the DPRK and reckless acts of aggression and boldly make a policy switch.

Second, the north and the south should refrain from seeking confrontation of systems while absolutizing their own ideologies and systems but achieve great national unity true to the principle of By Our Nation Itself to satisfactorily resolve the reunification issue in conformity with the common interests of the nation.

If they try to force their ideologies and systems upon each other, they will never settle the national reunification issue in a peaceful way, only bringing confrontation and war.

Though the people-centred socialist system of its own style is the most advantageous, the DPRK does not force it on south Korea and has never done so.

The south Korean authorities should neither seek “unification of systems” that incites distrust and conflict between the north and the south nor insult the other side’s system and make impure solicitation to do harm to their fellow countrymen, travelling here and there.

The north and the south, as they had already agreed, should resolve the national reunification issue in the common interests of the nation transcending the differences in ideology and system.

Third, they should briskly hold dialogue, negotiations and exchanges and make contact to relink the severed ties and blood vessels of the nation and bring about a great turn in inter-Korean relations.

It is the unanimous desire of the fellow countrymen for both sides to stop fighting and pave a new way for reunification by concerted efforts. They should no longer waste time and energy over pointless arguments and trifling matters but write a new chapter in the history of inter-Korean relations.

Nothing is impossible if the Korean nation shares one purpose and joins efforts. On the road for reunification the north and the south had already agreed upon such charter and great programme for reunification as the July 4 Joint Statement, the historic June 15 Joint Declaration and the October 4 Declaration, thus demonstrating to the whole world the nation’s determination and mettle to reunify the country.

Kim Jong Un said: We think that it is possible to resume the suspended high-level contacts and hold sectoral talks if the south Korean authorities are sincere in their stand towards improving inter-Korean relations through dialogue. And there is no reason why we should not hold a summit meeting if the atmosphere and environment for it are created.

In hearty response to his New Year Address the entire Korean nation, who is brimful of fresh confidence and vigour, is determined to turn out together in the nationwide movement for the country’s reunification so as to glorify this year as a landmark in opening up a broad avenue to independent reunification.

It is expected in earnest that the turnaround in Korea’s reunification will be brought about this year, 70 years after the division of the Korean nation.