South Korea erases ‘enemy’ reference to DPRK in paper

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January 16, 2019

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South Korea erases ‘enemy’ reference to DPRK in paper

Source: AFP | 00:05 UTC+8 January 16, 2019 |

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Seoul crossed out a reference to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as its enemy in a defense white paper published yesterday, amid rapidly warming ties despite stalled nuclear talks between Pyongyang and Washington.

The 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, placing a heavily fortified border across the peninsula and leaving it still technically at war.

For years South Korea and the United States have carried out large-scale military drills against potential attacks from the DPRK, while Pyongyang has repeatedly threatened to turn Seoul into a sea of fire.

But ties between the two Koreas have warmed significantly in recent months under the South’s President Moon Jae-in, who has held three summits with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un since taking office in May 2017.

The biennial report — a blueprint for South Korea’s defense and security goals for the next two years — said “any external force” that threatened the country’s sovereignty or territory would be considered an enemy.

It also described Pyongyang’s weapons of mass destruction as a threat but did not apply the term to its military provocations or cyberattacks.

In the previous white paper in 2016, Seoul described Pyongyang as posing “major threats” to national security, adding that “the North Korean regime and its military will remain an enemy” as long as such threats persist.

Moon has pursued a policy of engagement with DPRK.

This is in increasing contrast to Washington.

The United States insists pressure should be maintained on Pyongyang until it denuclearizes.

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South Korea erases ‘enemy’ reference to DPRK in paper

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