Slow-Motion Reunification

For a half-century, it has been impossible to cross the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. But not today: Daily buses now transport South Korean workers across the border to work in a joint industrial complex. The project is part of a larger South Korean effort to promote engagement with North Korea and to stabilize the region. While President Bush hopes that North Korea will collapse like East Germany and other communist states, South Koreans worry that such an explosive event will unleash economic shock, a refugee crisis, and uncertain nuclear risks. They instead favor gradual reunification and economic incentives for disarmament, but they may be unable to reach such goals without US cooperation. – YaleGlobal