Welcome to BASE21

The world we live in had entered into a new era about a decade ago, but the Korean peninsula remained throughout the '90s an ongoing "cold war area" least affected by the outside changes. This year on June 15th, President Kim Dai Jung and Chairman Kim Jung Il finally met at the historic Summit meeting in Pyongyang. It was the first occasion for a Summit meeting to be held between the heads of the two Koreas. Finally, a Post-cold war era seemed to knock on the doors of the two Koreas. It is rather too early to evaluate the alleged "success" of the June Summit meeting, since the ongoing processes of the Summit meeting have just started to bring out its effects. The meetings of the separated families, which were held simultaneously in Seoul and Pyongyang, were widely telecast and acclaimed. If the current mood and pace of the North-South dialogue continue to lead inter-Korean relations for more than several months, one can safely say that the Koreans finally can start a new era of peace and cooperation on their soil.

The historical meaning of the rapprochement of the two Koreas is truly of immense magnitude, commencing a new era of globalization with a renewed spirit of unification of the Korean nation. After experiencing devastating natural and financial disasters in the '90s, North and South Korean leaders have become disillusioned that their real threats were not coming from the other Korea. To cope with external challenges and competition with big powers and globalizing forces, the two Koreas are in dire need of maximizing internal sources including boosting inter-Korean cooperation and solidarity. The history of war and confrontation, which dominated inter-Korean relations in the latter half of the 20th century, should be replaced by a new century of engagement and cooperation.

Leaders of the two Koreas should unleash their historic imagination to have a feel for a new perspective. The 21st century ought to be an era of co-prosperity and co-operation rather than domination and confrontation for the two Korean states. Normalization of inter-Korean relations will bring a new era of cooperation and development in the North-East Asia. The Trans-Siberian Eurasia Railroads Project, which the South Korea proposed to the North, is mutually beneficient for the two Koreas. The North-East Asian Community will grow into one of the world's most attractive regions for investment, and the Korean peninsula will be the heart of this region.

Now is the time for Korean leaders to show their leadership to keep the momentum going in the right direction. The euphoric mood of the Korean people that has pervaded since the June Summit may not last longer than a few months. Humanitarian incidents of the exchange of separated families and long-term political detainees are only good signs that should be continued by more structural changes. Economic cooperation and military talks are two of the key agendas that need to be solved.

Economic cooperation is a key agenda for normalizing inter-Korean relations. For this, two conditions should be met. First, South Korea should greatly help Pyongyang's economic development either by persuading South Korea's business sector to invest capital and technology in North Korea, or by guaranteeing safety and security for entrepreneurial activities of foreign firms and international capital in North Korea. North Korea, on their part, should provide internationally recognized contracts to satisfy a certain level of investment conditions. Second, North Korea should comply to President Kim's request for relevant measures to transform the existing precarious military situation of the Korean peninsula. Tension reduction is vitally needed to level up any kind of long-term exchanges and cooperations between the parties, both governmental and non-governmental. Hence, the Defense Ministerial Meeting that is scheduled in late September is only the beginning of a long itinerary of cooperation and bargaining in the political and military spheres.

The current post-Summit engagement of North and South Korean relations needs to be institutionalized. The Summit meeting of June resolved the most urgent condition for the rapprochement, i.e., a minimum level of trust. The Summit between the two Kim's signaled a good omen of creating mutual trust. For political systems that thrived on the antagonistic dependence of "the enemy's existence" for half a century, partnership relations will take some time, which should be learned and trained in before it becomes accustomed to. Realistic perception on the heterogeneity of the two systems should be a cornerstone for the policy makers. An attitude of perseverance and toleration, if not respect, for the other system is truly what is needed. Adjustment and transformation of political and legal systems of both Koreas are eventually required. President Kim Dai Jung needs to create a wide base of popular support as a well as a supra-partisan consensus to push and eventually to pass on his unification policy to the subsequent administration. The two Koreas should continue to demonstrate to the global community their tenacious will to usher in a new age of cooperation and co-prosperity. Disarmament and military reduction should follow as a natural corollary of the new spirit of peace and cooperation. Economic development and prosperity will crucially depend on a system of mutual trust that includes military cooperation between the North and South Korea.