South-North Joint Declaration

Export agreement:

Export agreement coding (PDF)

Country/entity: North Korea
South Korea
Region: Asia and Pacific
Agreement name: South-North Joint Declaration
Date: 15 Jun 2000
Agreement status: Multiparty signed/agreed
Interim arrangement: Yes
Agreement/conflict level: Interstate/interstate conflict
Korean Conflict (1950 - )
Before WWII, the Korean peninsula was part of the Japanese empire. It was when the USSR declared war on Japan in August 1945, following an agreement between Stalin and Churchill at the Tehran Conference in 1943, that the Korean peninsula was liberated down to the 38th parallel as per the agreement. However, following the post-WWII breakdown in the Allied relations and the start of the Cold War, the peninsula was not unified as agreed. Instead rival regimes were set up by the USSR and the Americans, both of which claimed power over all of the peninsula. North Korea invaded the South with the backing of China and the USSR, causing the United Nations - spearheaded by the Americans - to come to the aid of the South. Eventually, Northern troops were pushed back to the 38th parallel and in July 1953 an armistice was signed creating a demilitarised zone between the North and South. In lieu of a peace treaty, the two countries are still technically at war. In 2013 the North Korean regime stated that the 1953 armistice was no longer in effect. After serious stand-offs due due to the unwillingness of the North to undergo nuclear disarmament the first inter-Korean summit took place in April 2018 and a joint Declaration for Peace regarding cooperation and peace was issued. This was then followed by the 2018 Summit between the US-North Korea where they committed to work for complete nuclear disarmament of the Korean Peninsula. The second summit ended without a deal in early January 2019.
Stage: Pre-negotiation/process
Conflict nature: Territory
Peace process: North Korea - South Korea interstate process
Parties: Kim Dae-jung, President, The Republic of Korea;
Kim Jong-il, Chairman, National Defense Commission, The Democratic People s Republic of Korea;
Third parties: -
Description: Rhetorical commitments to resolve the question of reunification independently and through the joint efforts of the Korean people; parties agreeing to promote reunification with some sort of federalism; agreement to resolve set of humanitarian issues; stimulating cooperation and exchanges in civic, cultural, sports, health, environmental and other fields; agree to hold dialogue on these issues soon; Chairman Kim Jong-il to visit Seoul soon.

Agreement document: KP KR_000615_South-North Joint Declaration.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Groups

Children/youth: No specific mention.
Disabled persons: No specific mention.
Elderly/age: No specific mention.
Migrant workers: No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group: No specific mention.
Religious groups: No specific mention.
Indigenous people: No specific mention.
Other groups: No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons: No specific mention.
Social class: No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender: No specific mention.
Men and boys: No specific mention.
LGBTI: No specific mention.
Family: Page 1,
3. The South and the North have agreed to promptly resolve humanitarian issues such as exchange visits by separated family members and relatives on the occasion of the August 15 National Liberation Day and the question of former long-term prisoners who had refused to renounce Communism.

State definition

Nature of state (general): Page 1, Untitled Preamble
In accordance with the noble will of the entire people who yearn for the peaceful reunification of the nation, President Kim Dae-jung of the Republic of Korea and National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-il of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea held a historic meeting and summit talks in Pyongyang from June 13 to June 15, 2000.
The leaders of the South and the North, recognizing that the meeting and the summit talks, the first since the division of the country, were of great significance in promoting mutual understanding, developing South-North relations and realizing peaceful reunification, declared as follows:

Page 1,
1. The South and the North have agreed to resolve the question of reunification on their own Initiative and through the joint efforts of the Korean people, who are the masters of the country.

Page 1,
2. Acknowledging that there are common elements in the Souths proposal for a confederation and the North s proposal for a federation of lower stage as the formulae for achieving reunification, the South and the North agreed to promote reunification in that direction.
State configuration: No specific mention.
Self determination: No specific mention.
Referendum: No specific mention.
State symbols: No specific mention.
Independence/secession: No specific mention.
Accession/unification: No specific mention.
Border delimitation: No specific mention.
Cross-border provision: No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed): No specific mention.
Elections: No specific mention.
Electoral commission: No specific mention.
Political parties reform: No specific mention.
Civil society: No specific mention.
Traditional/religious leaders: No specific mention.
Public administration: No specific mention.
Constitution: No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing: No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing: Power sharing→Territorial power sharing→Federal or similar sub-divided government
Page 1,
2. Acknowledging that there are common elements in the South s proposal for a confederation and the North s proposal for a federation of lower stage as the formulae for achieving reunification, the South and the North agreed to promote reunification in that direction.
Economic power sharing: No specific mention.
Military power sharing: No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL general: No specific mention.
Bill of rights/similar: No specific mention.
Treaty incorporation: No specific mention.
Civil and political rights: No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights: No specific mention.

Rights related issues

Citizenship: No specific mention.
Democracy: No specific mention.
Detention procedures: No specific mention.
Media and communication: No specific mention.
Mobility/access: No specific mention.
Protection measures: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Rights institutions

NHRI: No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions: No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law: No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions: No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts: No specific mention.
Prisons and detention: No specific mention.
Traditional Laws: No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction: Socio-economic reconstruction→Development or socio-economic reconstruction→Socio-economic development
Page 1,
4. The South and the North have agreed to consolidate mutual trust by promoting balanced development of the national economy through economic cooperation and by stimulating cooperation and exchanges in civic, cultural, sports, public health, environmental and all other fields.
National economic plan: No specific mention.
Natural resources: No specific mention.
International funds: No specific mention.
Business: No specific mention.
Taxation: No specific mention.
Banks: No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights: No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights: No specific mention.
Cultural heritage: No specific mention.
Environment: Page 1,
4. The South and the North have agreed to consolidate mutual trust by promoting balanced development of the national economy through economic cooperation and by stimulating cooperation and exchanges in civic, cultural, sports, public health, environmental and all other fields.
Water or riparian rights or access: No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees: No specific mention.
Ceasefire: No specific mention.
Police: No specific mention.
Armed forces: No specific mention.
DDR: No specific mention.
Intelligence services: No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces: No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces: No specific mention.
Corruption: No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime: No specific mention.
Drugs: No specific mention.
Terrorism: No specific mention.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general: No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon: No specific mention.
Courts: No specific mention.
Mechanism: No specific mention.
Prisoner release: No specific mention.
Vetting: No specific mention.
Victims: No specific mention.
Missing persons: No specific mention.
Reparations: No specific mention.
Reconciliation: No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory: No specific mention.
Other international signatory: No specific mention.
Referendum for agreement: No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar: No specific mention.
Enforcement mechanism: Page 1,
5. The South and the North have agreed to hold a dialogue between relevant authorities in the near future to implement the above agreement expeditiously.
Related cases: No specific mention.
Source: UN Peacemaker
http://peacemaker.un.org/

South-North Joint Declaration

15 June 2000

In accordance with the noble will of the entire people who yearn for the peaceful reunification of the nation, President Kim Dae-jung of the Republic of Korea and National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-il of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea held a historic meeting and summit talks in Pyongyang from June 13 to June 15, 2000.

The leaders of the South and the North, recognizing that the meeting and the summit talks, the first since the division of the country, were of great significance in promoting mutual understanding, developing South-North relations and realizing peaceful reunification, declared as follows:

1. The South and the North have agreed to resolve the question of reunification on their own Initiative and through the joint efforts of the Korean people, who are the masters of the country.

2. Acknowledging that there are common elements in the South s proposal for a confederation and the North s proposal for a federation of lower stage as the formulae for achieving reunification, the South and the North agreed to promote reunification in that direction.

3. The South and the North have agreed to promptly resolve humanitarian issues such as exchange visits by separated family members and relatives on the occasion of the August 15 National Liberation Day and the question of former long-term prisoners who had refused to renounce Communism.

4. The South and the North have agreed to consolidate mutual trust by promoting balanced development of the national economy through economic cooperation and by stimulating cooperation and exchanges in civic, cultural, sports, public health, environmental and all other fields.

5. The South and the North have agreed to hold a dialogue between relevant authorities in the near future to implement the above agreement expeditiously.

President Kim Dae-jung cordially invited National Defense Commission Chairman Kim

Jong-il to visit Seoul, and Chairman Kim Jong-il decided to visit Seoul at an appropriate

time.

Kim Dae-jung, President, The Republic of Korea

Kim Jong-il, Chairman, National Defense Commission, The Democratic People s Republic of Korea