United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton paid a rare visit on a rainy day to the heavily fortified border dividing the two Koreas.
Hundreds of thousands of troops stand ready on both sides of the 4.8km-deep demilitarised zone, making it one of the most heavily guarded borders in the world.
"Although it may be a thin line, these two places are worlds apart," Clinton said outside the Military Armistice Commission building, where officials from North Korea and the United Nations Command meet for talks.
She thanked the troops - US, South Korean and from other nations - that guard the buffer zone that stretches from east to west and lies just 50km from the South Korean capital, Seoul.
Clinton travelled to the border with US Defence Secretary Robert Gates.
Watchful eye at hostile border
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