Defense & Intelligence Policy, Business and Technology

Lines of communication still open at DMZ separating North and South Korea

Military Times: SEOUL, South Korea – Along the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea, little has changed between the soldiers manning both sides of the iconic border, even if the international rhetoric around them has changed substantially.

“We still pass messages,” said one U.S. Forces-Korea official who spoke on the condition of not being identified, referring to the way that North and South Korea have kept a line of communication open, not only in this most recent time of tension, but also in previous decades.

It’s one of the odd qualities of the highly symbolic DMZ, which has elements in place to try and maintain the peace between North Korea and South Korea, even as both sides seem to edge toward conflict. While the Joint Security Area at the DMZ and its famous blue meeting houses doubles as a stopping point for educational tours and can be a place for family reunification, it’s also a sensitive military checkpoint, one that President Donald Trump has said he will not visit during his stop in Seoul on Tuesday.

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