Kim agrees to ‘permanently dismantle’ site of missile tests
White House welcomes progress as Korean leaders meet in further easing of tensions
NORTH Korea has agreed to permanently dismantle engine-testing facilities and missile launch pads in the presence of international inspectors and to move towards the decommissioning of a major nuclear enrichment site.
The announcement followed two days of talks between Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in, the South Korean president, who arrived in Pyongyang on Tuesday for a high-stakes summit intended to salvage nuclear diplomacy negotiations between North Korea and the US, which have stalled in recent weeks.
Mr Kim also promised to “visit Seoul in the near future”, which would be the first visit by any North Korean leader.
In a joint statement released yesterday, North Korea expressed its “willingness to continue taking additional steps in accordance with the June 12 North Korea-US Joint Declaration, such as permanent dismantlement of its Yongbyon nuclear facilities”.
The Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Centre is a major complex about 100km north of Pyongyang, and its permanent closure would be a significant move towards ensuring that Mr Kim gives up his nuclear arsenal.
However, in a joint press conference following their talks, Mr Moon clarified that steps to close it down would be conditional on reciprocal, unspecified, measures from the US, effectively putting the ball in Washington’s court.
The pledge to dismantle engine-testing facilities and missile launch pads refers to the Dongchang-ri site in north-west North Korea.
The tentative olive branch comes amid an ongoing impasse between Pyongyang and Washington over the speed of denuclearisation.
The US wants to see rapid, concrete steps on disarmament from Pyongyang, while the North Koreans are pushing for more assurances over security first.
There was no mention in the declaration either of a key US demand that North Korea discloses a full inventory of its nuclear assets, or of Pyongyang’s request that the US agrees to a peace treaty to formally end the 1950-53 Korean war.
With neither side willing to blink first, Mr Moon has stepped into the role of mediator in a bid to prevent the breakdown of a fragile diplomatic detente that began early this year and led to a historic summit between Mr Kim and Donald Trump, the US president, in Singapore.
‘There will be no rocket or nuclear testing’
The US administration has not formally responded to the latest developments. However, President Trump, who may meet with Mr Kim for a second summit in the near future, tweeted that the summit’s outcome was “very exciting”.
“Kim Jong-un has agreed to allow nuclear inspections, subject to final negotiations, and to permanently dismantle a test site and launch pad in the presence of international experts,” he told his followers shortly after midnight on Tuesday in Washington.
“In the meantime there will be no rocket or nuclear testing. Hero remains to continue being returned home to the United States. Also, North and South Korea will file a joint bid to host the 2032 Olympics. Very exciting!”
In his own statement to the press, Mr Moon said that he and Mr Kim had committed themselves to creating “a nuclear-free peninsula” and to remove “all threats” that could trigger war.
Their joint agreement specified measures including a joint military committee, the halt of border drills and the withdrawal of 11 border guard posts by the end of the year, in order to reduce the risk of military escalation.
It also outlined plans to reconnect a cross-border railway, to allow letter exchanges and video calls between citizens, and to seek to obtain the rights to co-host the 2032 Summer Olympics.
Mr Kim made no explicit mention of new steps towards denuclearisation, speaking only in general terms of his commitment to “make the Korean Peninsula a land of peace that is free from nuclear weapons and nuclear threat”.
The remainder of Mr Moon’s trip is expected to be largely
focussed on cultural and symbolic activities designed to project an image of cross-border friendship.
Accompanied by his wife, Kim Jung-sook, and a delegation of more than 100 senior business executives and celebrities, he will visit the Mansudae art gallery and dine at the Taedonggang fish restaurant before heading to the “Mass Games”, a choreographed gymnastic display in Pyongyang’s main stadium.
Mr Moon and Mr Kim will also visit to Mount Paektu, on the border with China. (© Daily Telegraph, London)