This year marks the 11th anniversary of the June 15 North-South Joint Declaration. Inter-Korean relations are at an all-time low; we can only hang our head when we think of how far we’ve fallen from the spirit created by the June 15， 2000 reconciliation and cooperation. Recently， South Korea has been caught up in the “he said， she said” drama with North Korea， with the North threatening to publicize what was discussed during the secret inter-Korean meeting and the South adamantly denying the charges. The impasse has completely severed relations between the two Koreas—they are unable to sit at the table together for even a simple dialogue.
The June 15 joint declaration entailed a spirit that encouraged improvement of inter-Korean relations and national reconciliation. In spite of this， the June 15 spirit has become debilitated with unrelenting mutual hostility and animosity， leaving the two Koreas helpless as they wait for a third-party to come forward to untie the Gordian knot and bring peace on the Korean peninsula once again. At this moment， it is China and the United States， not the two Koreas， who are at the forefront of trying to bring peace to the divided