Merz hopes for peaceful reunification of Korea

Chancellor Merz's trip to Asia hopes for peaceful reunification of Korea As of: October 30, 2026 • 12:14 p.m

A reunited Korea - this was the hope that Chancellor Merz expressed during his visit to South Korea's border. Given North Korea's increasing isolation, this goal is a long way off. And according to Merz, that also poses a danger for Europe.

At the end of his trip to Asia, Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited the so-called demilitarized zone in South Korea on the border with neighboring North Korea - and also recalled the history of his own country. During his stay in South Korea, he was "very often asked about the experiences we had with a divided country and reunification," said Merz. And he is grateful "that we have not had to experience such a division in Germany for 36 years."

The CDU politician expressed the hope that South and North Korea would also achieve peaceful reunification. It is precisely there - at the so-called demarcation line - that one can sense "how much a country like this suffers from division and how much there is a desire to be reunified, at least in this part of the Korean peninsula," said Merz.

The Korean peninsula has been divided since the Korean War. North and South Korea are still officially at war, as after the end of the Korean War in 1953 only an armistice was agreed and no official peace treaty was concluded. United Nations soldiers are also stationed on the border between the two countries, including Bundeswehr forces.

A UN mission is supposed to ensure compliance with the ceasefire between South and North Korea.

But in the years following a meeting between then South Korean President Moon Jae and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in 2018, hopes for peaceful reunification have increasingly diminished.

At the beginning of 2024, Kim declared the goal of a peaceful rapprochement with South Korea impossible. The national committee that was supposed to find ways towards reunification was dissolved. Last May it was announced that all references to possible reunification had been removed from North Korea's constitution. Kim had all historic train and road connections between the two countries blown up and fortified the already heavily armed border with landmines and barricades. Most recently, self-propelled howitzers were spotted along the North Korean border.

However, all diplomatic efforts to ease tensions are currently coming to nothing. Just a week ago, the South Korean government again proposed starting talks with North Korea. However, Kim has not yet signaled any willingness to do so.

The risk of war on the border between North and South Korea is considered to be higher than it has been in decades. more

During his visit, the Chancellor made it clear why the conflict also affects Germany and Europe. Because of its extensive international isolation, North Korea is increasingly seeking solidarity with Russia. Since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, North Korea has supplied Russia with large quantities of artillery ammunition and missiles and, according to South Korean intelligence estimates, sent around 15,000 soldiers to reinforce the Russian military.

In view of this development, Germany and South Korea have agreed on closer cooperation and increased exchange of information on security and defense. "Korea's security affects Europe's security. And Europe's security also affects Korea's security," said Merz. "The world is small - even in war."

Before his visit to South Korea, the Chancellor's five-day trip to the Indo-Pacific region had already taken him to Singapore and Japan. Merz is scheduled to travel back to Germany in the evening.

This topic in the program: BR24 Radio | News | Oct 30, 2026 | 08:10 amtagesschau.de | Merz ends his trip to Asia and visits the border with North Korea | Oct 30, 2026 | 10:26 am