South and North Korea sought to find ways of defusing tensions on the peninsula at high-level talks that were resumed Sunday after being adjourned earlier in the day. The talks began Saturday at the truce village of Panmunjeom, an hour after the North’s deadline for the South to halt propaganda broadcasts across their heavily fortified border or face a military attack.
The fact that Pyongyang first proposed the talks Friday and accepted Seoul’s counterproposal may suggest the rogue regime has winced at Seoul’s resolute response to its latest provocation. The South Korean military returned dozens of artillery rounds Thursday after the North fired several shells near one of the loudspeakers blaring anti-Pyongyang propaganda. The propaganda broadcasts were resumed for the first time in 11 years after land mine explosions blamed on the North maimed two South Korean soldiers in the Demilitarized Zone earlier this month.
Pyongyang may be somewhat perplexed that their recent provocations did not bring the results it intended. Most South Korean people stand behind President Park Geun-hye’s firm stance, with liberal groups having refrained from criticizing her government in a departure from their past attitude.
But it may be more accurate to think that the North has acted under a careful plot to mix provocative acts with calls for dialogue for the purpose of stopping the South’s propaganda campaign. Pyongyang conveyed its intention to hold talks with Seoul shortly after Thursday’s artillery firing. It also made the proposal for high-level talks Friday while it threatened that it was ready for an all-out war.
The North’s sincerity toward improving inter-Korean ties beyond its immediate aim of stopping Seoul’s propaganda broadcasts will be proved if it accepts the South’s demand for an apology for its recent provocations.
Pyongyang’s angry response to the propaganda broadcasts shows the vulnerability of the North Korean regime. The North claims the propaganda insults the dignity of its supreme leadership. But it is far from entitled to talk about dignity, given its recent television broadcasts in which North Korean soldiers were shown shooting at President Park’s image with rifles.
It is now apparent that the room for Pyongyang to get away with provoking Seoul has become increasingly narrow. With South Korea’s strategic patience wearing thin, North Korea should be made to abandon its habitual practices.
In this regard, many South Koreans appear disappointed with China’s response to the North’s latest provocation, which took place on the same day Seoul announced Park would visit Beijing next month to attend a military parade.
A statement by a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry reiterated Beijing’s call on the two Koreas for calm and restraint. In the eyes of the South Korean public, China’s wariness to hold the North responsible for its provocations contrasts with the U.S.’ pledge to stand alongside Seoul in coping with threats from Pyongyang.
It is yet to be seen what “constructive role,” as Chinese officials put it, Beijing would assume in resolving tensions on the peninsula. But its reluctance to put more pressure on the North will result in boosting the U.S.’ strategy of consolidating trilateral security cooperation with South Korea and Japan.
