Moon mission: What is behind Seoul's peace drive?

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (second from left) and his wife Ri Sol Ju (left) with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook on the top of the sacred Mount Baekdu on Sept 20 after their summit in Pyongyang.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (second from left) and his wife Ri Sol Ju (left) with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook on the top of the sacred Mount Baekdu on Sept 20 after their summit in Pyongyang. PHOTO: KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA KNS/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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For spy satellites keeping watch over North Korea, one spot in Pyongyang would have been ablaze with light last Wednesday night instead of being shrouded in the country's usual darkness.

The reason: South Korean President Moon Jae-in was there at the May Day Stadium, making history as the first leader from the South to deliver a rousing public address to a crowd of some 150,000.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 24, 2018, with the headline Moon mission: What is behind Seoul's peace drive?. Subscribe