President Biden’s meeting with the South Korean President in late May 2021 has drawn renewed international interest in the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
Not long before the Biden-Kim meeting, the virtual International Forum on One Korea (IFOK) in February 2021 convened experts from both ROK and the U.S. to assess the current relations of the two nations as well as make recommendations on the next steps to addressing the long-standing division of the peninsula and North Korea.
In a report of the proceedings, Yonhap News Agency highlighted two top experts’ recommendations for the Biden administration.
Robert Gallucci
Victor Cha
Both Robert Gallucci, former U.S. nuclear negotiator, and Victor Cha, Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, broached the topic of human rights in North Korea as critical for any forward movement. Cha recommended using a set of principles from which to re-open negotiations, including protection of basic human rights.
The One Korea International Forum and other efforts of the One Korean Global Campaign reminds us of the importance of having a strategic and principled framework for any engagement with North Korea.
There are plans for a similar virtual forum later on in August.
Read Yonhap’s article on the International Forum for One Korea virtual conference here.
To find more news and information about IFOK, click here.