Because the Korean War did not end with a peace treaty but was merely paused with an armistice treaty signed by China, the UN Command headed by the US, and North Korea, the two Koreas are essentially still at war, and the United States plays a leading role in perpetuating the conflict as it exercises wartime command authority (OPCON) over the South Korean military.  The ongoing state of war has led to continuous suffering throughout the peninsula as millions of families remain separated, resources are directed to tools of destruction, and human rights are sacrificed in the name of security in both South and North Korea.  As the US and South Korea have expanded joint military drills that promote hostility in the name of defense, North Korea has responded with the resumption of missile tests. The outbreak of COVID infections in North Korea further threatened the stability of the entire region.  Humanitarian cooperation would otherwise have addressed the problem, but humanitarian projects are hampered by US and UN sanctions. 

The 2018 and 2022 General Assemblies directed the offices of the PC(USA) to communicate with domestic and international governments and agencies to encourage the peaceful resolution of the divisions on the Korean Peninsula, lift sanctions threatening the lives of North Koreans, and seek expansion of people-to-people exchanges across the divide. A bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep Brad Sherman (D-CA) that would further these initiatives.  The Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act, H.R. 1369 calls for serious, urgent diplomacy in pursuit of a binding peace agreement to formally end the Korean War; 

It is critically important that the U.S. government and the international community commence a new process of peace-building across the Korean peninsula.   With so many lives at stake, the United States, as a major party to the ongoing war, has a moral imperative to proactively seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict. Please contact your member of Congress and urge them to cosponsor HR 1369.

The 2022 General Assembly also called on Presbyterians to sign on to the Korea Peace Appeal organized by our partners in the National Council of Churches of Korea (NCCK).  The campaign aims to end the Korean War and achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula by collecting 1 million signatures before July 2023, the 70th anniversary of the armistice agreement. More than 370 South Korean civil society organizations, religious groups, individual supporters, and international partner organizations are participating in the Korea Peace Appeal Click here to sign on to the appeal, and please indicate “Presbyterian Church U.S.A.” in the affiliation field.