An image of Wonsan’s Coast. Credits@ChosonExchange
As part of our Kangwon Development Initiative, we published an article with the World Economic Forum’s Agenda Blog. We believe that a breakthrough in US-DPRK requires a comprehensive approach to reviewing all aspects of the relationship, present and future, of which economic engagement will be one important aspect.
On 5th November 2020, shortly after the US elections, the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Korean Peninsula hosted a panel discussing inter-Korean economic development of Gangwon (Kangwon) province in the two Koreas, together with the Jeju Peace Forum and Choson Exchange, a volunteer network training North Koreans on entrepreneurship and economic policy.We were joined by Gangwon Governor Choi Moon Soon who reminded us that his province is in the same situation as the Korean Peninsula. The province is split in half by a demilitarized zone – into Gangwon in the South and Kangwon in the North – divided for seven decades too long, by a war that has yet to end.
How the two Koreas cooperate on Gangwon province, and whether the new US administration is willing to permit it, could make this the site for the next stage of South Korean President Moon Jae In’s peace process. It could also become a platform for building trust between the US and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in a relationship sorely needing its own Great Reset…