North Korea and the United States hold talks in New York 5th March, 2007 : U.S. and North Korea have started talks aimed at normalizing diplomatic ties. This was arranged as part of an agreement in which Pyongyang has pledged to scrap its nuclear arms programs for aid. These talks mark the highest-level meeting on U.S. soil since North Korea's Kim Jong-il sent a top envoy to Washington in 2000. The North Korean envoy, Kim Kye-gwan, and the Assistant Secretary of State, Christopher Hill, have discussed ways of resolving the problems that the two countries have had since the 1950-53 Korean War. President Bush had labeled North Korea part of the 'axis of evil' in 2002. Antipathy to the United States has always been a core element in Pyongyang's international relations. Despite this, Kim Kye-gwan's meetings are said to have shown a 'sea change in tone and substance' in comparison to other recent exchanges. The unofficial meeting, which was attended by eight North Koreans and fifteen Americans, included Victor Cha of the U.S. National Security Council.

Joseph Stalin 5th March, 1953: Joseph Stalin, the Prime Minister of the Soviet Union and the supreme chief of the Communist Party died.