WPanmunjom, also known as Panmunjeom, now located in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea or Kaesong, North Hwanghae Province, North Korea, was a village just north of the de facto border between North and South Korea, where the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement that paused the Korean War was signed. The building where the armistice was signed still stands.
WThe April 2018 Inter-Korean summit took place on 27 April 2018 on the South Korean side of the Joint Security Area, between Moon Jae-in, President of South Korea, and Kim Jong-un, Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, and Supreme Leader of North Korea. The summit was the third inter-Korean summit – and the first in eleven years. It was also the first time since the end of the Korean War in 1953 that a North Korean leader entered the South's territory; President Moon also briefly crossed into the North's territory.
WThe May 2018 inter-Korean summit was the second inter-Korean summit in 2018. On 26 May, North Korean state chairman Kim Jong-un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in met again in the joint Security Area, this time on the North Korean side in the Inter-Korean Peace House in the Unification Pavilion. The meeting took two hours, and unlike other summits it had not been publicly announced beforehand. Photos released by South Korea's presidential office showed Moon arriving at the northern side of the Panmunjom truce village and shaking hands with Kim's sister, Kim Yo-jong, before sitting down with Kim for their summit. Moon was accompanied by Suh Hoon, Director of the National Intelligence Service of South Korea, while Kim was joined by Kim Yong-chol, a former military intelligence chief who is now a vice chairman of the North Korean ruling party's central committee tasked with inter-Korean relations. The meeting was largely centered around North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's upcoming summit with US President Donald Trump. Kim and Moon also embraced before Moon returned to South Korea. On 27 May, Moon stated in a public address that he and Kim agreed to meet again at "anytime and anyplace" without any formality and that the North Korean leader once again pledged to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula in accordance with the Panmunjom Declaration.
WThe 2019 Koreas–United States DMZ Summit was a one-day summit held at the Korean Demilitarized Zone between North Korean chairman Kim Jong-un, U.S. president Donald Trump, and South Korean president Moon Jae-in, following the 2019 G20 Osaka summit. Trump briefly stepped over the border at 3:45 PM (GMT+9) on June 30, marking the first time a sitting U.S. president had set foot on North Korean soil. It was also the second time since the end of the Korean War in 1953 that a North Korean leader entered the South's territory, following the April 2018 inter-Korean summit. Senior White House advisors Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, also attended the summit, with Ivanka Trump and U.S. envoy to South Korea Harry B. Harris Jr. holding a meeting with Kim later broadcast on North Korean TV.
WThe Korean axe murder incident was the killing of two US Army officers, Captain Arthur Bonifas and First Lieutenant Mark Barrett, by North Korean soldiers on August 18, 1976, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The US Army officers had been part of a work party cutting down a poplar tree in the JSA.
WLocated in the Joint Security Area (JSA), the so-called "Bridge of No Return" crosses the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) between North Korea and South Korea. It was used for prisoner exchanges at the end of the Korean Armistice in 1953. The name originates from the final ultimatum that was given to prisoners of war brought to the bridge for repatriation: they could either remain in the country of their captivity or cross the bridge to return to their homeland. However, once they chose to cross the bridge, they would never be allowed to return, even if they later changed their minds.
WWilliam Kelly Harrison Jr. was a highly decorated officer in the United States Army with the rank of Lieutenant General. A graduate of the West Point Military Academy, he rose through the ranks to Brigadier general during World War II and distinguished himself in combat several times, while serving as Assistant Division Commander, 30th Infantry Division during the Normandy Campaign and the Battle of the Bulge. Harrison was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest decoration of the United States military for bravery in combat, for his actions during Operation Cobra.
WThe Inter-Korean House of Freedom is a four-story building located in the southern part of Panmunjom. It stands opposite to its North Korean equivalent, the Phanmun Pavilion. It is located 130 meters southwest of the Inter-Korean Peace House in the south of Panmunjom. The Inter-Korean House of Freedom was rebuilt on 9 July 1998 after demolition of the old house of freedom. The building hosted the 2019 North Korea–United States DMZ Summit. It was also one of many venues considered for the 2018 North Korea–United States summit, which would be eventually organized in Singapore.
WThe inter-Korean Peace House is a venue for peace talks between North and South Korea. The building is situated in the Joint Security Area on the south side of the Military Demarcation Line bisecting the area. Before the Korean War, the village, named Panmunjom, consisted of householders.
WThe Joint Security Area is the only portion of the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) where North and South Korean forces stand face-to-face. The JSA is used by the two Koreas for diplomatic engagements and, until March 1991, was also the site of military negotiations between North Korea and the United Nations Command (UNC).
WJoint Security Area is a 2000 South Korean mystery thriller film starring Lee Young-ae, Lee Byung-hun and Song Kang-ho. It was directed by Park Chan-wook and is based on the novel DMZ by Park Sang-yeon. The film, which was shot on location in South Korea, concerns an investigation into the circumstances surrounding a fatal shooting incident within the DMZ, the heavily fortified border that separates North and South Korea.
WThe Korean Armistice Agreement is an armistice that brought about a complete cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. It was signed by United States Army Lieutenant General William Harrison Jr. representing the United Nations Command (UNC), North Korean General Nam Il representing the Korean People's Army (KPA), and Peng Teh-huai representing the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army (PVA). The armistice was signed on 27 July 1953, and was designed to “ensure a complete cessation of hostilities and of all acts of armed force in Korea until a final peaceful settlement is achieved.”
WThe Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (NNSC) was established by the Korean Armistice Agreement signed 27 July 1953, declaring an armistice in the Korean War. It is, with the Military Armistice Commission, part of the mechanism regulating the relations between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea.
WThe North Korea Peace Museum is in the building constructed to house the signing of the Korean War Armistice Agreement on 27 July 1953. It is located in the former village of Panmunjeom (P'anmunjŏm) in North Hwanghae Province, North Korea.
WThe Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Reunification of the Korean Peninsula was adopted between the Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, and the President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, on April 27, 2018, during the 2018 inter-Korean Summit on the South Korean side of the Peace House in the Joint Security Area.
WThe Phanmun Pavilion is a North Korean building located in the northern part of Panmunjom, which is a building corresponding to the South Korean building Freedom House. It was built in September 1969 as a two-story building 80 meters north of Freedom House.
WThe Unification Pavilion is a venue for peace talks between North and South Korea. The building is situated in the Joint Security Area on the North side of the Military Demarcation Line bisecting the area. Before the Korean War, the village, named Panmunjom, consisted of householders.