Peninsula one step closer to peace

The summit between the leaders of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea on Friday will be the first in 11 years, and many hope it will be a big step toward realizing permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. Two experts share their views with China Daily’s Pan Yixuan. Excerpts follow: prepare the ground for a successful US-DPRK summit.

Before announcing a halt to nuclear and missile tests, Kim visited China on March 25-27, and the ROK and Russian foreign ministers held discussions on April 10. Such multilateral contributions have not only helped promote the peace process on the Korean Peninsula but also created an conducive atmosphere for the ROK-DPRK summit to yield positive results, including a framework for a friendly and sustainable inter-Korean relationship.

If the DPRK-ROK summit goes well, as many expect it to, it will also help build trust between Pyongyang and Washington, paving the way for a successful US-DPRK summit.

The ROK-DPRK summit can help ease tensions, but for permanent peace in the region, Pyongyang and Washington have to find a peaceful and sustainable way to denuclearize the peninsula and end the sanctions against Pyongyang.

We hope the ROK-DPRK summit meeting is successful, so that Northeast Asia can move forward on the path to sustainable economic development.