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Kim Jong Un leaves South Korean leader’s peace legacy in ruins

Bloomberg Published on Thu, Jun 18, 2020 / 9:56 AM GMT+8

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(June 18): When North and South Korea opened their first liaison office less than two years ago, President Moon Jae-in in Seoul declared a “new era has dawned.” This week, Kim Jong Un showed him how little had changed when he reduced the US$15 million (S$20.9 million) building to rubble.

See: North Korea blows up South Korea liaison office, Seoul says

The shocking act of destruction, which a Moon spokesman denounced as “reckless,” appeared to be part of a calculated gamble to try to force the South Korean president to break with the US and support sanctions relief for North Korea. The result was to literally blow up the most concrete achievement of Moon’s decades-long drive to establish a lasting peace with his country’s greatest foe.