Could the Korean War have been avoided?

They deem him their worst enemy who tells them the truth. -Plato, (427-347 BCE)

The 2 Koreas are talking and negotiating. Could they have done the same thing in 1950 and avoided the Korean war? Could the 2 Vietnams have negotiated and avoided the Vietnam war? Could Europe have negotiated a European Union with a common Euro currency a thousand years ago and avoided turning Europe into a vast cemetery of war dead?

Will we be asking the same thing about the current conflict with Islam and the Arabs a hundred years from now? Will future generations of Muslims be ashamed at their gullibility to be suicide bombers, as the Japanese are about their kamikaze roles for the Emperor in WW II?

The answers to these questions are yes. Most wars are preventable. When goods and services cross borders in trade, armies do not.

A worse evil than war is old men who start unnecessary wars.

Bilbo Baggins
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http://tinyurl.com/2wc6dx
2 Koreas sign summit declaration
By JAE-SOON CHANG, Associated Press Writer Oct 4 2007

The leaders of North and South Korea pledged Thursday to seek a peace treaty to replace the Korean War's 1953 cease-fire and expand projects to reduce tension across the world's last Cold War frontier.The pact came a day after a deal at China-hosted arms talks among North Korea, the U.S. and other regional powers, in which Pyongyang promised to disable its main nuclear facilities and fully declare its nuclear programs by Dec. 31.The move would be the biggest step North Korea has taken to scale back its nuclear ambitions after decades of seeking to develop the world's deadliest weapons. President Bush hailed it as a key for "peace and prosperity" in northeast Asia.It was followed by the bilateral agreement capping three days of meetings in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, between North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun. The two men "agreed to closely cooperate to end military hostility and ensure peace and easing of tension on the Korean peninsula," according to a joint statement.

Associated Press writers Burt Herman, Hyung-jin Kim and Kwang-tae Kim contributed to this report.