As North Korea’s nuclear armament is being completed, discussions on military options such as pre-emptive strike, preventive war, and North Korean leaders’ elimination are intensifying inside and outside the US government. Discussions on South Korea’s independent nuclear armamentor the redeployment of US tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula are being intensified. In addition, some discussions have been raised to accelerate the collapse of North Korea by intensifying military pressure. This article sheds light on the practical limitations of this military optionsdebate, and first of all, aims to reveal that a peaceful approach is the only option left for us.
This article will summarize the content of the Korean Peninsula Peace Treaty as well as the key elements of the Northeast Asian Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty. Starting from the discussions on the Denuclearization Zone that were raised in the existing East Asian civil society, this article harmonized the treaty with the Korean Peninsula Peace Agreement and critically revised the main content in order to increase the feasibility. Finally, this article examines the meaning of balanced diplomacy as the orientation of Korean diplomacy that can ensure peace on the Korean Peninsula by pursuing the peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue.
This article will summarize the content of the Korean Peninsula Peace Treaty as well as the key elements of the Northeast Asian Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty. Starting from the discussions on the Denuclearization Zone that were raised in the existing East Asian civil society, this article harmonized the treaty with the Korean Peninsula Peace Agreement and critically revised the main content in order to increase the feasibility. Finally, this article examines the meaning of balanced diplomacy as the orientation of Korean diplomacy that can ensure peace on the Korean Peninsula by pursuing the peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue.
Author
LEE Sam Sung (Professor, Hallym University)