Korean peace declaration ‘is possible without China, but would be weaker’
Suggestions of a formal deal when Donald Trump meets Kim Jong-un, as China’s state media claims end-of-war pacts are invalid without Beijing
A declaration to officially end the Korean war without China is technically possible, but its effectiveness may be weakened considering Beijing’s geopolitical importance over the region, observers say.
Last week US President Donald Trump suggested that he and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un might be able to fashion a peace agreement at their meeting in Singapore on June 12 – a meeting that may involve South Korean President Moon Jae-in, but to which China has not been invited.
That incensed Global Times, a state-owned Chinese tabloid, which argued in an editorial this week that China’s involvement was needed to ensure any deal to formally end the decades-long conflict was “more secure”, otherwise it could be overturned.
“An end-of-war agreement without China’s participation is invalid,” it said. “If Washington, Seoul and Pyongyang sign a declaration to end the war, that would be a good thing … but such a declaration cannot be legally linked to the Korean Armistice Agreement.”
The piece also rebuffed concerns that China was left out in the cold over a possible declaration to end the Korean war. “Was China kicked out of the end-of-war declaration? ... [China] has always been a key player,” it said.