The America-Korea Conflict

On June 25, 1950, thousands of soldiers from the Korean People’s Army, of what is now known as North Korea, invaded the 38th Parallel, the main boundary to South Korea. That was when the Korean War began. The combat of the war lasted for three years, until July 27, 1953, when both countries signed the Korean Armistice Agreement. Despite the ceasefire in 1953, no peace treaty was ever created, and thus the two countries are still fighting, although without combat.

Even though it was sixty-four years since the war “ended”, North Korea began testing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles in 2017, showing signs of a possible nuclear war. This lead to the United Nations putting sanctions on North Korea, as well as other countries forbidding their citizens to visit the country.

Despite their relations being sour, US President Donald Trump agreed to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to discuss denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. The summit would include a statement of peaceful relations, security guarantees for North Korea, and, of course, the dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal. President Trump and Kim Jong-un met on June 12, 2018, in Singapore. Afterwards, the US claimed it was a success, although Korean representatives claimed it “broke down”.

After that, a second summit was scheduled in the next year. So, in late February, Trump and Kim met once again in Hanoi, Vietnam. However, the summit was unsuccessful, as North Korea wanted all sanctions against it to end. But, Trump and Kim prepared for a third summit, which happened on June 30th. In this, they met in the Korean Demilitarized Zone that had been created sixty-six years earlier, with the head of South Korea, Moon Jae-in. This would be the first time a US president would step into North Korean territory since 1953. The summit ended with both countries agreeing to resume nuclear peace talks.