BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • BBC Trending

Rolling out a welcome for Kim Jong-un

  • Published
    26 April 2018
Share page
About sharing
South Korean Guard of honourImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Kim Jong-un would be the first leader to inspect South Korean guard of honour

By Bernadette McCague & Pratik Jakhar
BBC UGC & Social News, BBC Monitoring

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in are due to gather for their first summit in over a decade.

Preparations have been gathering pace but should you give the leader of the nation on the other side of a hotly-disputed border a red carpet welcome?

This is the dilemma faced by South Korea as it prepares to host Mr Kim at this week's historic inter-Korean summit.

  • North and South Korea: The petty side of diplomacy

  • The North Korean crisis in 300 words

Former South Korean Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun were each given such a reception when they travelled to North Korea in 2000 and 2007, respectively.

However, more than 1,000 people have signed a petition on the website of Cheong Wa Dae, external, South Korea's presidential office, opposing the honour guard treatment for Mr Kim.

South Korean President Moon Jae-In and North Korean leader Kim Jong-unImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Should South Korea hold a guard of honour for the North Korean president?

The courtesy has also been debated on Naver, one of South Korea's largest websites (which also partly redacts users' names to protect their anonymity).

Bazi**** wrote: "It's not achieving peace at all because North Korea already completed the development of nuclear weapons. Do we have to review the honour guard because they did it for our president before? The difference is that we never killed anyone in the North by shooting missiles."

Leek**** continued: "Review the honour guard to the enemy state? Why don't we just get rid of our military then?"

It all comes down to money for Thak****, who says: "Our government just wants to give in to everything that North Korea wants, even though it has not given up the nuclear ambition. Moon is only obsessed with North Korea. Please stop wasting taxpayers' money by spending it on North Korea."

A South Korean woman writes goodwill messages during a rally to welcome the forthcoming Inter-Korean SummitImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

What is the best way to welcome Kim Jong-un to South Korea?

You might also like:

  • Kim Jong-un impersonator fails to impress Olympic cheerleaders

  • Winter Olympics: Would Chloe Kim have made it as a South Korean?

  • Rap video frosty welcome for 2018 Winter Olympic Games

However, some South Korean internet users have come out in support of the government, applauding it for trying to mend ties with the North.

Naver user earlgreeyyyyy said: "Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun also received a review of the honour guard at the previous summits with the North. Isn't it sensible for us to return a favour? I don't see any problem with it."

Similarly, ap_da9pda wrote: "The South Korean government will do it informally anyway and also it's merely a way of returning the favour. I hope the inter-Korean summit will be successful."

Additional reporting by BBC Monitoring's Tae-Jun Kang

More on this story

  • What to expect from the Kim-Moon talks

    • Published
      26 April 2018
    South Korean President Moon Jae-In and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un
  • The political gamble of the 21st Century

    • Published
      9 March 2018
    S Korean President Moon Jae-in

Top stories

  • John Torode sacked as MasterChef presenter

    • Published
      1 hour ago
  • Thousands of Afghans were moved to UK in secret scheme after data breach

    • Published
      2 hours ago
  • Men jailed for felling 'irreplaceable' sycamore

    • Published
      3 hours ago

More to explore

  • The chaotic lives of a couple who killed their baby daughter

    Constance Marten and Mark Gordon
  • Watch: How do you get a phone call with the president?

    Donald Trump and Gary O'Donoghue
  • The undersea tunnel network that could transform Shetland's fortunes

    A grey car enters a tunnel, driving past red "no pedestrian" and "no cyclist" roadsigns. The tunnel disappears into a grassy hillside. A blue and white radio station information sign reads "FM 100.0".
  • How CCTV exposed lies of couple who murdered their grandson

    A young two-year-old boy with light brown hair smiling as he looks at a phone. He is wearing a black and blue stripped jumper, with a sofa and white wooden door behind him
  • Who's missing from the BBC salaries list, and why?

    Claudia Winkleman on The Graham Norton Show
  • 'My disabled son was punched' - how a CCTV error exposed a major abuse scandal

    x
  • Biggest human imaging study scans 100,000th person

    An image from the UK Biobank project. It shows for MRI scans of the body showing the legs and major organs including the heart, spine and stomach in different colours.
  • The fate of the Sycamore Gap tree has shed light on a deeper concern

    A treated image of the Sycamore Gap Tree
  • Summer Essential: Your family’s guide to the summer, delivered to your inbox every Tuesday

    concentric circles ranging from orange to yellow to represent the sun, with a blue sky background
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    John Torode sacked as MasterChef presenter

  2. 2

    Men jailed for felling 'irreplaceable' sycamore

  3. 3

    Girl in union jack couldn't give 'British' speech

  4. 4

    Thousands of Afghans were moved to UK in secret scheme after data breach

  5. 5

    Adolescence star Owen Cooper becomes Emmys' youngest ever nominee

  6. 6

    Couple guilty of murdering two-year-old grandson

  7. 7

    Constance Marten spent months at 'torture' church, friend tells BBC

  8. 8

    Immigration status of benefit claimants published for first time

  9. 9

    The undersea tunnel network that could transform Shetland's fortunes

  10. 10

    Savers to be targeted with offers to invest in shares under new plans

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

  • An insight into Mary Earps' journey

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Mary Earps: Queen of Stops
  • Anaïs Gallagher explores Oasis' legacy

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Mad for Oasis
  • The golden age of tennis

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Gods of Tennis
  • Danny Dyer shares his life's soundtrack

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Desert Island Discs: Danny Dyer
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.