On April 27, 2018, North And South Korean leaders signed official documents of truce, ending the Korean War. Leaders Kim Jong-un, of North Korea, and Moon Jae-in, of South Korea, signed a vow that would bring “lasting peace” to the peninsula, bringing in a new era and ending decades of hostility between the two countries.

The Korean War officially began June 25, 1950, and concluded July 27, 1953, but conflicts between the two countries never ceased. The state war may have officially ended in 1953 when the Korean War was halted in a truce, but not in an official treaty.

In 1953, the Korean Armistice Agreement was signed to cease land fighting, but no formal peace treaty exists. According to Korean Studies specialist, Charles K. Armstrong, the two countries are “technically still at war.” President Donald Trump announced it this month stating, “people don’t realize the Korean War has not ended.”

North and South Korean leaders signed a truce titled the Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity, and Unification on the Korean Peninsula. The documentation commits the two countries to bring a formal end to the Korean War and to achieve complete denuclearization. North and South Korea promised to ease military tensions, to secure a peaceful regime, and work toward a nuclear-free region.

North and South Korea plan to hold military meetings when South Korean President Moon Jae-in visits Pyongyang in the fall. The two countries call of truce have been met with great surprise by world leaders. In 1991, North and South Korea pledged for a peace regime that would end the Korean War but it shortly ended after two years over conflict with North Korea’s nuclear program.

In October 2007, North and South Korea held a summit proposing that the two countries, "work together to advance the matter of having the leaders of the three or four parties directly concerned to convene on the Peninsula and declare an end to the war."

North Korea and the United States

The United States President Donald Trump, took to twitter stating, “KOREAN WAR TO END!

The United States and all of its GREAT people should be very proud of what is now taking place in Korea!” Later, in a following tweet, Donald Trump warned North Korea that the United States was “not going to be played.”

The most highly anticipated meeting between Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump will take place next month or in June. This will be the first time in history a sitting U.S. president will meet with a North Korean leader.

Although ties between North and South Korea are growing stronger, there are still significant challenges. According to CNN, Japan is a vital country between both the United States and North Korea, but as North and South Korea become more aligned, Japan is beginning to feel “the pressure.” Trump has stated that he wants to remove U.S.

soldiers from Korea and expand the United States military presence in Okinawa, Japan.

The threat of nuclear war to the United States

According to the Wall Street Journal, during the meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong-un, the president will demand North Korea to end its nuclear program quickly. President Trump will also declare that if Kim Jong-un does not meet his demands, the president will not lift sanctions on Pyongyang.

With the growing threat of nuclear war lingering over humanity, President Trump has no choice but to seek out other avenues that do not end in war. President Trump has threatened to walk out of the meeting with Kim Jong-un if his terms are not met, which may not be a good idea if you are speaking to a leader that has one finger already on the nuclear button.