Korean DMZ
Tense peninsula boundary
The Korean DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) is the heavily fortified buffer strip separating North and South Korea, roughly 250 kilometers long and 4 kilometers wide.
Established by the 1953 armistice that paused the Korean War, it remains one of the most militarized borders on Earth despite its name.
The zone has become an accidental nature preserve, with rare wildlife thriving in the absence of human activity: We visited the observation post overlooking the Korean DMZ.
- demilitarized zoneArea barring armed forces
- bunkersFortified underground chambers
- wildlife sanctuaryProtected area for animals
- 38th parallelKorean division latitude
- barbed wireSpiked metal fence material
armistice · migratory birds · endangered species · Korean War · border crossing · border dispute · checkpoints · tunnel · landmines · buffer zone · no-man's land · Kim Il-sung · reunification · Cold War · tourism sites · peace talks · conservation efforts · surveillance
- East AsiaChina, Japan, Taiwan, Mongolia, Beijing
- Asian Naturebamboo forest, Bengal tiger, giant panda, Himalayas, rice paddy
- bordersborder, boundary, border crossing, national borders, boundary line
- zonesdanger zone, restricted zone, territory, district, time zone
- Cold WarBerlin Wall, Iron Curtain, arms race, Warsaw Pact, Cuban Missile Crisis
- Korean historyJoseon dynasty, Three Kingdoms, demilitarized zone, armistice line, 38th parallel
Korean DMZGerman reunification
Merging of divided nation
peace zone · peace treaty · Berlin Wall fall · Treaty of Westphalia · Camp David Accords
Korean DMZSeoul
South Korean capital city
Times Square · megacity · commercial district · open city · US-Canada border