Einar H. Dyvik
Research expert covering Nordics and global data for society, economy, and politics
Inter-Korean relations and issues - statistics & facts
The Korean Peninsula used to be a single nation with a high degree of ethnic similarity. Today, it has been separated into two countries: the Republic of Korea (ROK) in the South and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the North; commonly known as South Korea and North Korea respectively. The division of Korea occurred between 1945 and 1948 due to an agreement between the Soviet Union and the United States, following the surrender of Imperial Japan in the Second World War. The subsequent Korean War from 1950 to 1953 changed the two Koreas' boundary along the 38th parallel into the demilitarized zone (DMZ) which is situated roughly in the middle of the Peninsula.
