We, the undersigned, call on the U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken to rescind the travel ban prohibiting U.S. passport holders traveling to, in, or through North Korea.

Before 2017, Americans were able to travel to North Korea to engage in a broad range of meaningful people-to-people exchanges. They included families separated by the Korean War, as well as humanitarian workers and many others engaged in educational and cultural exchanges. Unfortunately, that all came to an abrupt halt when the Trump Administration ordered a ban on travel to North Korea in 2017.

One of the most heartbreaking and enduring human costs of the unresolved Korean War is the more than 70-year separation of families. The 2017 ban has increased this heartbreak by cutting off the already-limited means of contact between families long-divided by the unended war.

People-to-people interactions are critical for long-term peace and mutual cooperation as they enable all sides to break down barriers. Suspending them exacerbates the ongoing US-North Korea conflict, which endangers the security of all.

We call on the Biden Administration to reverse the 2017 ban and allow US citizens to once again travel freely to North Korea.