Seoul: North Korea on Friday reset its clock forward by 30 minutes to match with the South’s time zone as a conciliatory move.
The new time zone will go into effect on Saturday.
“The time-resetting is the first practical step taken after the historic third north-south summit meeting to speed up the process for the north and the south to become one and turn their different and separated things into the same and single ones,” reported North Korea’s news agency KCNA.
The move comes in the backdrop of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in ending their historic summit on Friday with a glimmer of hope and positivity in Panmunjom.
To begin with, Kim became the first-ever North Korean leader to step on the South Korean soil, when he took a step at the border village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), the world’s most heavily guarded border, separating the two countries. He then shook hands with Moon, which was the first-ever meeting between them after the Korean War ended in 1953.
The inter-Korean summit was also unique as it was the first time in over a decade that it was being held. The previous two summits were held in 2000 and 2007 in North Korean capital of Pyongyang. It was also the first time that the summit was being held in South Korea.
The Korean War between the two countries took place between 1950-53, which ended with a ceasefire and signing of an armistice agreement.
Technically, both the countries are still at war since no peace treaty has been signed between them.
In a joint declaration after the talks, the two leaders officially inaugurated a document formally called the ‘Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Unification on the Korean Peninsula’.
The declaration read, “The two leaders solemnly declare that there will be no more war on the Korean Peninsula and a new era of peace has begun,” CNN reported.
The two Koreas agreed to sign a peace treaty formally later this year, ending the six-decades-old war between the two countries.
Moon also reiterated that it marked the rise of “a new era of peace”.
The South Korean President is also slated to visit Pyongyang later this year, according to a statement released by his presidential office.
Many countries such as China, Russia and Japan and the United Nations (UN) have praised the outcome and positivity of the successful summit. They hoped for ending of hostilities and pressing for peace, denuclearisation and reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula. (ANI)