President Moon Calls for "End-of-War Declaration" Again After 15 Days

Korea Society Keynote Speech
North Korea Obstructs South Korean Military's West Sea Search
US-ROK Differences Persist on Denuclearization Methodology
Moon's Commitment to Restarting the Korean Peninsula Peace Process

President Moon Jae-in is having a phone conversation with Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the President of Uzbekistan, at the Cheong Wa Dae Yeomin Building on the 6th.

Amid repeated setbacks in inter-Korean relations, the Korean Peninsula Peace Process is struggling to regain momentum, and President Moon Jae-in has once again brought up the idea of a 'Declaration of the End of War.' However, North Korea has shown no response, even threatening South Korean military search operations related to the shooting death of a South Korean official in the West Sea. The United States is also reportedly showing differences in stance with South Korea regarding the declaration at this time, placing President Moon's plan for the declaration on a harsh trial.

On the 8th, in his keynote speech at the Korea Society's virtual annual dinner, a nonprofit organization for Korea-US exchange, President Moon said, "The declaration of the end of war is the true beginning of peace on the Korean Peninsula," and added, "I hope that the two countries will cooperate for the declaration of the end of war on the Korean Peninsula and lead the active participation of the international community."

This came just 15 days after mentioning the declaration of the end of war in a video speech at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on the 23rd of last month, reflecting President Moon's desperate will to open the door to a thawing mood on the Korean Peninsula through the declaration. However, just before the General Assembly speech, the West Sea shooting incident involving a South Korean citizen occurred, and criticism poured in that President Moon's mention of the declaration was inappropriate. Moreover, recent revelations such as the defection of Cho Sung-gil, former North Korean charg? d'affaires to Italy, to South Korea have kept tensions in inter-Korean relations high.

The surrounding circumstances following these events are far from favorable to President Moon. After the shooting death of the South Korean official in the West Sea on the 22nd of last month, the government planned to turn this into an opportunity to reverse inter-Korean relations. It proposed reconnecting military communication lines and conducting a joint investigation with the North, but North Korea has shown no response for over a week.

Furthermore, North Korea is reportedly threatening the South Korean military's ongoing search operations in the West Sea. On the 7th, Defense Minister Seo Wook said in his opening remarks at the Ministry of National Defense's audit, "Although North Korea expressed apology and a commitment to prevent recurrence regarding the recent death of our citizen in the West Sea, it has not responded to the request for a joint investigation and continues to threaten our legitimate search operations in our waters, maintaining military tension." This is effectively interpreted as a refusal of the joint search proposal.

President Moon Jae-in delivered the keynote speech at the Korea Society's virtual annual dinner on the 8th, a nonprofit organization promoting political, economic, cultural, and artistic exchanges between Korea and the United States.
President Moon stated, "A declaration of the end of the war is truly the beginning of peace on the Korean Peninsula," and expressed hope that "Korea and the United States will cooperate for a declaration of the end of the war on the Korean Peninsula and lead the active participation of the international community."

Following North Korea's silence, the temperature difference between South Korea and the United States regarding the declaration of the end of war has also become apparent, leading to evaluations that President Moon's plan is becoming an empty echo. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, when asked about the U.S. stance on the declaration during a parliamentary audit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs the previous day, said, "(The government) has considered the declaration of the end of war as a political declaration from the beginning, while the U.S. is looking at it more from a legal perspective." She added, "Therefore, we are continuing to broaden our mutual understanding of each other's positions, and a lot of sympathy is being formed."

This leaves room for interpretation that differences still exist between South Korea and the U.S. The two countries have not reached a consensus on the core issue of denuclearization methods. The U.S. consistently maintains that preemptive denuclearization measures must precede compensatory actions such as the declaration of the end of war.

The opposition parties have also reacted sharply to President Moon's mention of the declaration. Former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min criticized on his Facebook that "Denuclearization has long been missing, and even when our citizens are shot and burned, the president only has the declaration of the end of war and fake peace in his mind."

Since the key to progress in the declaration lies in changes and movements from the U.S., President Moon plans to focus on persuading the U.S. In his speech that day, President Moon referred to President John F. Kennedy's 'theory of peace,' saying, "I will embark on a bold journey toward peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula with you," emphasizing, "We go together."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.