Letter to Hon. Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor to the White House - Rep. Young Kim Urges Biden Administration to Oppose End-of-War Declaration for Korean War

Letter

Dear Mr. Sullivan,

We write to you today regarding recent calls by South Korean and U.S. politicians to support a
formal end of war declaration for the Korean War as a catalyst for resuming dialogue with the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). We are gravely concerned that this declaration,
instead of promoting peace, would seriously undermine and destabilize the security of the
Korean peninsula. We also support the measured approach you have demonstrated thus far and
urge you to engage with your South Korean counterparts on the clear dangers and risks of this
strategy.

In order to have peace, both sides must be determined to keep it. Thus far, Kim Jong-un has
shown no interest in pursuing an end of war declaration, which he has personally labeled as
"premature." Kim has repeatedly stated that sanctions relief must be a first order priority before
peace talks while continuing to launch missiles and further develop North Korea's nuclear
weapons program. Arguments in favor of the declaration as a means of bringing North Korea
back to the table for negotiation have fallen on deaf ears in Pyongyang.

Further, there is no historical precedent to support the theory that the Kim regime would abide by
the terms of a peace agreement. The DPRK has repeatedly violated binding agreements with
South Korea, the U.S., and the United Nations, and continues to engage in illegal activity to skirt
sanctions on its nuclear weapons program and egregious human rights abuses. Pyongyang also
frequently violates the longstanding armistice between North and South and has repeatedly
declared it as null and void.

An end of war declaration also poses serious risks for U.S. forces on the peninsula and the
stability for the region. A premature peace treaty would provide a predicate for the DPRK to
demand the dismantlement of the U.S. Forces South Korea and the U.S. withdraw its 28,500
troops from South Korea, given that their purpose is to deter aggression from the North, and call
for the permanent termination of annual U.S.-ROK joint military exercises. Our military
presence in South Korea includes Camp Humphreys, the largest overseas U.S. military base in
the world, and plays an essential role in promoting regional security and deterrence against the
DPRK, Russia, and the People's Republic of China. Opening the door for considering for the
removal of U.S. troops from the Korean peninsula before the North has fully denuclearized
would have disastrous consequences for U.S. national security, erode our combined deterrence,
and jeopardize the lives of tens of millions of Americans, Koreans, and Japanese.

Declaring an end to hostilities should come at the culmination of comprehensive and long-term
talks with North Korea after eliminating its nuclear arsenal and demonstrating verifiable
improvements on its human rights record. It should not be offered as an attempt to initiate talks
with an uncertain endgame and strategy.

The U.S. should continue to work closely with South Korea and Japan in balancing against
security threats from North Korea and work with the UN and our allies to enforce existing
sanctions on the DPRK and its elites to bring them back to the negotiating table. This strategy
should also include persuading the People's Republic of China to exert actual financial and
political pressure on Kim and his inner circle.

Peace cannot be achieved through words alone. It requires action and binding guarantees to hold.
We must be able to trust that North Korea will fulfill potential commitments to full
denuclearization, cease illicit activity, and improve its human rights record. Granting the Kim
regime unilateral concessions which substantially weaken the position of the United States,
Korea, and our allies to resist its aggression would be premature and dangerous to our shared
interests. We urge you to reject calls to declare an end to hostilities until these conditions are
met.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your reply.

CC: Antony Blinken, United States Secretary of State
CC: Sung Yong Kim, United States Special Representative to North Korea

Sincerely,