Korean Peninsula deal can help reconciliate

National Security Adviser of the ROK Kim Kwan-jin (R), Unification Minister of the ROK Hong Yong-pyo (2nd R), Secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Kim Yang Gon (2nd L), and Hwang Pyong-so (L), the top military aide to the DPRK's leader Kim Jong Un, shake hands after the inter-Korean high-level talks at the truce village of Panmunjom inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, in this picture provided by the Unification Ministry and released by Yonhap on August 25, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

After 40-plus-hours of talks at the border village of Panmunjom, the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea agreed on Tuesday to defuse tensions by withdrawing the highest-alert orders to their troops.

In a joint statement, Pyongyang expressed regret over the landmine blasts in the southern section of the demilitarized zone on Aug 4 that maimed two ROK soldiers on patrol, while Seoul stopped its loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts along the border from Tuesday noon.

Tensions rose as well as eased fast this time, because neither side wanted a war. Given their joint efforts to maintain calm on the Korean Peninsula even during the two major flare-ups in 1993 and 2002, it is clear that Seoul and Pyongyang want to defuse the situation rather than worsening their relationship.

Yet the six-point agreement reached on Tuesday is a temporary compromise, because it is aimed at defusing the immediate crisis. The two sides agreed to hold a working-level Red Cross meeting early next month to facilitate the reunion of families that were separated by the Korean War (1950-53) and to hold an inter-governmental dialogue as soon as possible.

Since taking office in 2013, ROK President Park Geun-hye has been struggling to fulfill her promise of rebuilding inter-Korean trust, because the two sides are yet to reach an agreement on resuming bilateral talks. In this sense, Seoul's propaganda broadcasts along the border, the first in 11 years, might be a tactic to pressure Pyongyang into agreeing to high-level talks. It also seemed to have helped seal the latest deal.

Still, the root cause of the crisis on the Korean Peninsula is the lack of trust between the two sides, which has made the DPRK feel insecure.