North Korea on Monday said it would move its clocks 30 minutes forward to align with South Korea’s time zone from May 5, Reuters reported, quoting the country’s new agency KCNA. The announcement follows the historic summit on April 27 during which South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North’s leader Kim Jong-un agreed to cease hostilities.
The two countries have had different time zones since 2015, when North Korea set its clocks half an hour behind South Korea’s.
The two leaders agreed to work on “complete denuclearisation” of the Korean peninsula.
On April 23, South Korea had said it had stopped propaganda broadcasts across the border into North Korea before the talks. Seoul said it would begin removing its speakers on Tuesday. “We see this as the easiest first step to build military trust,” South Korean defence ministry spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo said. “We are expecting the North’s implementation.”
The diplomatic developments have led to other measures. North Korea’s ally, China, announced that it would send Foreign Minister Wang Yi to North Korea on Wednesday and Thursday. Kim and Moon agreed to formally end the Korean War which ended in 1953 in a peaceful truce.
The summit has also paved the way for negotiations between North Korea and the United States.
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