This paper aims to explain South Korea’s decision to open dialogue with North
Korea in the detente period. President Park Chung-hee, who came to power in
a military coup, did not pay much attention to unification matters in his early
rule, but starting from the late 1960s, Park gradually began to change his
North Korea policy due to a combination of external and internal conditions. I
intend to explain the causes of Seoul’s new approach toward Pyongyang
through three variables: Threat perception, regime characteristics, and the distribution
of power. A combination of these factors forced the Park regime to
change its North Korea policy from confrontation to cooperation. However,
inter-Korean cooperation proved to be short-lived. The early demise of rapprochement
can be explained by the absence of compelling forces that could
have driven the deepening of cooperation between the two parties.