Thaw of border talks offers glimmer of hope

It is good that the talks between the two Koreas on Tuesday at the border truce village of Panmunjom appeared amicable and constructive, with both delegations seemingly intent on making the meeting a success, even making quips about the winter weather and their frosty relations.

And the unusual, if not unprecedented, suggestion by Ri Son-gwon, the chief delegate of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, that the talks be "open and transparent" and their content be made public "in light of the great expectations and huge interest both here and abroad" and to demonstrate its "sincerity and endeavors" was itself something of a break with the past.

It is now almost certain that we will see athletes of the DPRK competing in the Winter Olympics being held in the Republic of Korea next month, and we may witness something similar to the scenes at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, when athletes from both sides of the 38th Parallel marched under one "Korean Peninsula" banner in identical uniforms at the opening ceremony.