Korean, US progressive Christian groups call for peace treaty, end to Korean War

2024-05-21 01:24:12      点击：528

The seventh Korea-U.S. Church Conference was hosted online by the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCCCUSA), Friday. Courtesy of NCCK

By Park Ji-won

The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCCCUSA) adopted a joint statement urging the governments of both South Korea and the United States to work towards declaring an end to the Korean War as well as to hold negotiations to sign a peace treaty on the Korean Peninsula.

In a joint statement released by the NCCK and the NCCCUSA Friday, largely regarded as liberal Protestant church organizations in both countries, the two groups said, "We urge both governments to declare an end to the Korean War and open negotiations to conclude a peace treaty."

Stressing that the May 21 summit between Seoul and Washington was a "disappointment," as it was a meeting mainly to reinforce the military alliance between the two nations, it said, "We are confident that the end of the war and the establishment of peace agreements will be the starting point for resolving a number of challenges, including the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and we urge the U.S. to support actively the efforts of the two Koreas to lead the way in accomplishing this."

The release of the joint statement marks the 71st anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War, and attempts to stimulate the current atmosphere on the Korean Peninsula between the two Koreas and the U.S. towards the resumption of peaceful talks between the countries.

The conference also called for Seoul and Washington to lift sanctions on Pyongyang, so that emergency disaster assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic can be provided to the North. It also urged the U.S. to stop pressing South Korea on the matter of joining the Quad network.

The Korea-U.S. church conference began in 1970 with the theme of the future of Northeast Asia, and was held six times until 2003. This year's 7th conference is the first time the meeting has taken place since then.