South Korea is planning to hold talks with North Korea in early December to discuss ways to establish a special peace and cooperation zone in the West Sea, as agreed upon during the inter-Korean summit earlier this month. The Seoul government convened the first follow-up Cabinet meeting to the summit talks on October 15 to map out concrete action plans for the implementation of the inter-Korean joint declaration. Seoul plans to propose setting up an inter-Korean West Sea peace zone committee to the North at the prime ministerial-level talks, scheduled for early next month. Here’s Baek Seung-ju from the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses to explain what ‘a special peace zone’ is.

The possibility of accidental armed conflict is highest in the West Sea, particularly the region surrounding the Northern Limit Line. There have been frequent military and diplomatic conflicts in the sea off the west coast of the Korean Peninsula. For example, a deadly naval clash occurred between the two Koreas before the semifinal games of the Korea-Japan World Cup in 2002. The maritime incident sank a South Korean speedboat and killed all six aboard. In an effort to reduce military tension in the disputed sea, South and North Korea have agreed to establish a special peace and cooperation zone in the West Sea at the North’s port of Haeju and in the surrounding region. It is part of an “economic cooperation belt” encompassing Haeju, the South’s Incheon, both port towns on the west, and the Gaeseong industrial park.
South and North have taken a significant stride toward economic cooperation and peace with the landmark agreement on the West Sea, one of the most likely regions to cause inter-Korean conflict. Under the agreement, the two sides will push ahead with the establishment of a special economic zone in the North’s harbor in Haeju and the surrounding areas, the opening of a direct sea route between Haeju and Incheon, and the joint use of the Han River estuary. The leaders of South and North Korea agreed on these economic plans during their latest summit, formulating basic principles in reducing tension and still conducting bilateral cooperation.

North Korea does not recognize the Northern Limit Line, often called by the abbreviation NLL, and has called for the redrawing of the actual line of demarcation between the two Koreas. In contrast, South Korea maintains that the de facto maritime borderline be kept intact. In order to create a peace zone, it would be ideal to relocate the military facilities closely positioned in the surrounding area of the NLL, but the military authorities in the two sides have refused to do so. In a different approach, South and North have decided to settle peace in the precarious region through economic cooperation. This is meant to apply ‘functionalism’ or a ‘functional approach’ to the West Sea. Since the 1970s, South Korea has sought to employ the concept of functionalism in the early years of European integration in which European countries eased military tension by increasing cooperation in non-military areas.

The two Koreas came up with a ‘peace zone’ in an effort to create peace in the West Sea, a long-time military flashpoint. The two sides will now see the symbol of inter-Korean military confrontation from a different angle. It will be reborn as a common economic bloc to help reduce tension and settle permanent peace. Mr. Baek has more.

When the two Koreas agreed to build the Gaeseong industrial park, neighboring military facilities were moved to other places or hid from view. In the same way, if South and North Korea proceed with economic and non-military activities in the West Sea, both sides will inevitably relocate their respective naval forces or reduce their operations in the surrounding areas, resulting in arms control. This is a significant step toward mutual disarmament and regional peace.

Both South and North Korea are well aware that they must tackle the West Sea issue before advancing bilateral relations. The NLL dispute has so far slowed the progress of economic projects requiring military security guarantees, such as the operation of cross-border railways and the joint development of the Han River estuary. Only after solving the West Sea issue, will the two sides be able to develop economic cooperation and build military trust. At present, there are wide differences between the Defense Ministry and the Unification Ministry over the status of the NLL. The Defense Ministry is obviously worried that North Korea may make the envisioned peace zone an excuse to nullify the NLL. On the other hand, the Unification Ministry, which has held direct dialogue with Pyongyang, demands that South Korea approach the maritime border issue differently for the sake of the successful operation of the peace zone. The NLL issue has stirred controversy inside South Korean society. Some argue that the NLL should remain firm, while others insist on a more flexible approach. Some diplomatic experts have a positive outlook that the thorny issue will be resolved smoothly after a peace zone is set up in the West Sea.

The Northern Limit Line has served as an inter-Korean maritime border, and vessels from the two sides are prohibited from crossing the line. If they increase economic exchanges in the prospective peace zone in the West Sea, however, the NLL will be recognized as a simple sea border rather than a line of military demarcation. The naval forces of both sides will then refrain from military operations, reducing the possibility of accidental clashes. This will gradually reduce the military significance of the NLL. Instead, it will be regarded as a symbolic line of an economic bloc harmonizing business and security.

The success of the West Sea agenda depends on how faithfully the two Koreas will implement the agreements reached during the inter-Korean summit, including the opening of a sea route between the North’s Haeju and the South’s Incheon and the creation of a joint fishing zone in the West Sea. Many expect that these reciprocal projects will help the two sides build mutual trust and share benefits, eventually easing tension between the two Cold War enemies. 　 [Interview] Researcher Seeks Inter-Korean Cooperation in Science and Technology
Inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation in political, military, security and economic areas has always been brought into the spotlight. However, very little attention has been paid to cooperation in the science and technology field. In a bid to overcome the unfortunate reality, a local researcher is preparing for technology integration of the two Koreas. Let’s listen to Choi Hyun-gyu, a member of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology.

The Korea Institute of Science and Technology is a research institute under the Ministry of Science and Technology. I’m the manager of the Trend Analyses Team, which mainly examines what companies and research centers will have to study in the future. The team is also in charge of North Korea’s science and technology. Currently, the technology gap between South and North Korea is enormously wide. The team seeks to upgrade the level of North Korea’s science and technology fields to the level of South Korea’s to form the basis of inter-Korean sci-tech integrity.

Mr. Choi has been operating a website called “North Korea Technology” or (www.nktech.net) since 2001. More and more South Koreans are hoping to engage in cooperation programs in this area, and many have already done so, but few people know about North Korea’s science and technology sectors. Mr. Choi opened this website for the purpose of helping people learn about them, and the portal site has provided lots of useful information thus far. Let’s listen again to Mr. Choi.

The website has six main sections, including documents on technology development and regulations, research materials, news & trends, and an encyclopedia. It contains the overall information about North Korea’s science and technology. Users can see North Korea’s science journals and various texts about the current level of the communist nation’s information technology, as well as relevant policies and rules. We’ve recently opened the ‘South-North Cooperation’ section, which exhibits various products using North Korea’s technology. Many people have shown deep interest in this new section.

As part of the effort to provide more detailed information about North Korea’s science and technology, Mr. Choi is now working to write an encyclopedia of science based on the glossary of some 150-thosuand North Korean tech terms, so that people in both Koreas can utilize it. He has also sent 200 information technology-related books to North Korea. Here again is Mr. Choi.

North Korea can hardly afford technology transfer from abroad. That’s why we sent books there. When I asked Northern officials if they used them well, they said they had read the books so many times that one of them was worn to rags. I was glad to hear that. I realized that they had badly needed the books and utilized them well. We have once worked on research materials on Mt. Baekdu in cooperation with North Korean officials. We compiled information about nature and precious natural monuments at the North Korean mountain, which can be shared by both South and North Korea. I felt it was a rewarding job when I heard many homesick people in South Korea shed tears of joy after reading the documents about Mt. Baekdu. In fact, North Korea has many notable technologies worth mentioning. I hope they will be made public in South Korea and in other countries as well to eventually benefit North Korea in some way.

Mr. Choi says that it is far from easy to exchange or share information with North Korea, because the reclusive country is reluctant to disclose anything about its science and technology. To overcome the limitations, he says the South should build a human network connecting South and North Korean scientists and compile related information as frequently as possible. Mr. Choi now expresses his hopes.

Unlike South Korean scientists, very few North Korean scientists can showcase their abilities properly, which is quite frustrating. I think it is absolutely necessary to create a favorable scientific environment where scientists in the two Koreas are allowed to research the same subjects in the same laboratories in cooperation. I hope I can play a guiding role in fulfilling the ultimate goal of expanding inter-Korean cooperation in the science and technology field.

Hopefully, Mr. Choi’s passion and commitment will contribute to the advancement of South-North cooperation in the science and technology sector.