Today in Korean history

Oct. 21

1994 -- A section of the Seongsu Grand Bridge spanning the Han River collapses, killing 32 people and injuring 17 others. The victims were mostly students aboard a bus that plunged into the water.

-- North Korea and the United States sign an agreement to end a nuclear dispute. The agreed-upon framework reached at the North Korean diplomatic mission in Geneva paved the way for future cooperation, including the replacement of graphite-moderated reactors in North Korea with light-water units and the normalization of political and economic relations between Washington and Pyongyang.

2004 -- North Korea's No. 2 leader, Kim Yong-nam, returns to Pyongyang after a visit to China. The goodwill visit provided an opportunity to affirm longstanding friendly relations between the two communist states.

2011 -- South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik and his French counterpart, Francois Fillon, agree to support expanded economic cooperation. It marked the first time in 20 years that a sitting French prime minister visited Seoul.

2016 -- The Association of Academies and Societies of Sciences in Asia (AASSA) decides not to consider North Korea's membership in the group, citing international sanctions. Pyongyang has sought to join the AASSA since 2014.
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