Moon: No war on Korean peninsula

> ‘Seoul effectively has veto over US military action’

SEOUL: There will be no war on the Korean peninsula, South Korean President Moon Jae-In ( pix) said yesterday, adding Seoul effectively had a veto over US military action in response to the North’s provocations.

Tensions have soared on the peninsula in recent months, with Pyongyang carrying out its first successful tests of an intercontinental ballistic missile, bringing much of the US within range.

Last week, it threatened to send a salvo of rockets towards the US territory of Guam – although it appears to have backed off for now – while US President Donald Trump promised “fire and fury” with Washington’s weapons “locked and loaded”.

The intense rhetoric on both sides has raised fears of a miscalculation leading to catastrophic consequences – the North has vast artillery forces deployed within range of Seoul, where millions of people live.

But at a press conference marking his first 100 days in office, Moon said: “I will prevent war at all cost. I want all South Koreans to believe with confidence that there will be no war.” The US has been the South’s security guarantor since the end of the Korean War in 1953, which left the peninsula divided and technically still in a state of conflict with no peace treaty.

Washington has 28,500 troops stationed in the country to protect it from the North.

But Moon said Seoul effectively had a veto on military action by the US.

Washington and Trump had agreed that “no matter what option they take about North Korea, all decisions will be made after consulting with and getting agreement with the Republic of Korea”, he said.

Trump’s rhetoric has raised alarm among observers but Moon, who visited Washington at the end of June, declined to criticise his choice of words.

The US president was “trying to pressure North Korea by showing a firm resolution”, Moon said.

“All South Koreans have worked so hard together to rebuild the country from the ruins of the Korean War. We can’t lose everything with another war.” – AFP