German Chancellor Friedrich Merz reflected on Germany’s division and reunification during a Friday visit to the Demilitarized Zone in South Korea, where the two Koreas remain divided.
In remarks recorded in an official German government transcript, Merz said Germany had not experienced division for 36 years. His comments drew on Germany’s experience of division and reunification during a visit to a peninsula still split between North and South Korea.
The German government’s itinerary placed the visit on the final day of Merz’s Oct. 26-30 Asia tour through Singapore, Japan and South Korea. He met South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Seoul on Oct. 29. The government said the trip aimed to strengthen economic and security cooperation, supply-chain resilience and work on artificial intelligence. EconoTimes previously covered Merz’s Asia tour.
South Korea’s presidential office said the Seoul meeting agenda included trade and investment, batteries, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, defense, and regional and international issues.
The Demilitarized Zone separates North and South Korea. The Korean War ended in 1953 with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, and the peninsula remains divided.
South Korea’s military said Oct. 20 that it uses loudspeaker broadcasts and warning shots to deter North Korean soldiers from crossing the Military Demarcation Line and to send back troops who cross. The statement came 10 days before Merz’s visit.
South Korea also blamed North Korean mines for a Sept. 21 explosion in the zone that wounded three South Korean soldiers. Pyongyang denied responsibility.
