President Moon Jae-in has ratified the agreement he reached with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyeongyang last month.
The South Korean leader signed it off a few hours after his cabinet approved it.
It's hoped the declaration will help efforts to denuclearize the North, lay the groundwork for inter-Korean economic cooperation and hopefully lead to lasting peace.
However, the president's decision to ratify without awaiting the National Assembly's approval incensed the opposition.
Shin Se-min has our top story.
President Moon Jae-in has ratified the Pyeongyang Joint Declaration and the military agreement,... which were both reached by the two Koreas at the third Moon-Kim summit last month.

"This will help catalyze the process of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and make it easier by reducing military tension and developing inter-Korean relations. Not only will it secure the safety of our people, it will also help improve our economy as it removes such risks from the peninsula."

He said the agreement reached by the leaders of the two Koreas will help speed up the North's denuclearization,... while laying the foundations for economic opportunities for the South.
President Moon added that the ratification of the inter-Korean agreement will first and foremost benefit residents living near the border area,... as they had long been disadvantaged,... and he called on related ministries to do their part in carrying out the ratified declaration.
President Moon said inducing the regime to change and become a normal state through dialogue and cooperation could in a way improve the human rights conditions in the North, rather than simply pressuring the regime.
The ratification comes as the Ministry of Government Legislation had said that the Pyeongyang Joint Declaration does not need parliamentary approval for ratification as the overreaching agreement,... the Panmunjeom Declaration reached at April's summit, is already being reviewed by parliament after the government submitted it last month.
Rival political parties at the National Assembly clashed over the Cabinet's approval of the summit agreement,... with the ruling Democratic Party... saying that the parliament should ratify the Panmunjeom Declaration signed in April,... while the conservative opposition bloc claimed the administration is disregarding parliament.
Shin Se-min, Arirang News.