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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrives at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi

The Blue House predicted on Feb. 25 that a declaration ending the Korean War “could be agreed upon” between North Korea and the US at their second summit. The question is drawing attention as the prediction comes while the specifics of current talks under way in Hanoi to coordinate the two sides’ agenda remain heavily under wraps.

“We have no way of know what form of end-of-war declaration it will be, but I think there is certainly a possibility that an end-of-war declaration could be agreed upon between North Korea and the US,” said Blue House Spokesperson Kim Eui-kyeom in a briefing that day.

A declaration ending the Korean War was reportedly proposed by the US as a corresponding measure for inspections of the Yongbyon nuclear facilities during the first working-level talks in Pyongyang earlier this month between US State Department Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun and North Korean State Affairs Commission Special Representative for US Affairs Kim Hyok-chol.

“In contrast with a peace agreement, the essential significance of an end-of-war declaration lies in encouraging North Korea’s denuclearization,” Kim explained.

“It could come in many different forms – quadrilaterally by South and North Korea, the US and China, trilaterally by South and North Korea and the US, or bilaterally between North Korea and the US – but this administration welcomes an end-of-war declaration in any form,” he continued.

“I think that even just an end-of-war declaration by North Korea and the US alone would be enough,” he said.

With the South and North Korean leaders reaching an agreement to pursue “trilateral meetings involving the two Koreas and the United States, or quadrilateral meetings involving the two Koreas, the United States and China with a view to [. . .] establishing a permanent and solid peace regime” in their Panmunjom Joint Declaration last April, the remarks indicated this represents a different concept from an end-of-war declaration.

Noting that South and North Korea, the US and Japan had individually made declarations of diplomatic relations and non-aggression, Kim Eui-kyeom went on to say, “If North Korea and the US declare an end to the war, you could argue that it completes war-ending declarations by the four countries with experience fighting around the Korean Peninsula.”

“The more important thing is to use that end-of-war declaration to encourage and hasten North Korea’s straightforward denuclearization,” he said. He also predicted that a peace agreement would occur at the final stage of denuclearization.

“We believe an end-of-war declaration could play the role of a kind of entryway toward achieving a peace regime,” he said.

Analysts suggested the Blue House was stating its position ahead of time in the event that an end-of-war declaration – which has been consistently pursued by the Moon Jae-in administration - is achieved between Pyongyang and Washington.

It remains to be seen how much Biegun and Kim Hyok-chol have been able to actually bridge their differences concerning the agenda as they reached their fourth day of working-level talks on Feb. 24. A “thumbs up” gesture toward the press by Biegun on Feb. 23 prompted speculation that the negotiations were going smoothly – but observers familiar with the talks remain circumspect. Reports have suggested the two sides are continuing to discuss the larger framework without having yet begun to address the particulars.

A senior White House official recently said the aims of the current working-level talks concern the two sides’ understanding and sharing of the denuclearization concept and collaboration toward freezes and a final roadmap for North Korea’s missile and WMD programs, including its nuclear weapons. In an interview with the US press before departing for Hanoi, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, “My team is on the ground today continuing to flesh out paths forward to develop a roadmap for a path forward between the two countries.”

The US side appears to be committing concerted efforts toward achieving a denuclearization roadmap at the summit. The New York Times reported the same day that Pompeo’s “largest challenge will be to extract from [North Korean leader Kim Jong-un] a timetable for dismantling his nuclear program.”

“He must also reconcile how the United States and the North define denuclearization,” it added.

Pompeo arrived in Hanoi on Feb. 26 in an apparent move for last-minute negotiations before the summit. A Reuters reporter who traveled with Pompeo reported that the secretary of state traveled to Vietnam on his own official aircraft as opposed to the US president’s Air Force One. US President Donald Trump is expected to depart for Hanoi tonight around 8:30 pm.

By Kim Ji-eun and Seong Yeon-cheol, staff reporters

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