Talks better than giving each other cold shoulder

The decision of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea to reopen a communication channel has sent a long-awaited encouraging signal that talks can be resumed and peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula restored. After two years' long resistance and feisty rhetoric, inter-Korean relations seem to be returning to the right track.

Since the suspension of the Pyongyang-Seoul hotline in February 2016, the DPRK has conducted several nuclear and ballistic missile tests, while the ROK has held large-scale military exercises with the United States.

However, the DPRK's top leader Kim Jong-un saying he is willing to send a DPRK team to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Pyeongchang in the ROK, and Seoul's immediate and positive response have raised hopes that DPRK-ROK ties are on the mend.