Moon, Putin seek common ground
Abe to join South, Russia presidents in Vladivostok
VLADIVOSTOK: South Korean President Moon Jae-in sought to find common ground with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to prevent the situation on the Korean Peninsula from spinning out of control.
“If we fail to stop North Korea’s provocations now, it could sink into an uncontrollable situation,” Mr Moon said in opening remarks before a meeting with Mr Putin in Vladivostok, Russia, yesterday. “I want to seek a fundamental solution to resolve the North Korea nuclear problem here.”
Mr Putin, who derided increased sanctions as “useless and ineffective” a day earlier, said that he welcomed the opportunity to discuss North Korea with Mr Moon.
“There’s no point in giving into emotions and backing North Korea into a corner,” Mr Putin said. “More than ever now we need to show restraint and avoid any steps that could escalate tensions.”
Russia and China both hold vetoes on the United Nations Security Council, which is considering new sanctions against Kim Jong-un’s regime after it conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test on Sunday.
“They’ll eat grass, but they won’t abandon their programme unless they feel secure,” Mr Putin told reporters on Tuesday at an emerging markets summit in Xiamen, China, which was hosted by his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.
North Korea has been seen readying another launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile that could come before it marks the anniversary of its founding on Sept 9. Mr Kim claimed on Sunday that he could fit a warhead onto an ICBM capable of striking the continental US.
President Donald Trump, who has warned North Korea of “fire and fury” if it continues threatening the US, has threatened to cut off trade with all countries that do business with North Korea, a group that includes China.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also plans to visit Vladivostok for talks with Mr Moon and Mr Putin. He told reporters in Tokyo yesterday that he wants North Korea to understand it has “no bright future” if it continues on its current path.
China has been considering closing a customs post along the border with North Korea, according to the Daily NK, a Seoul-based website that says it gathers information from informants inside the isolated nation. The Quanhe customs house in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, near the Russian border, is the second biggest of nine posts between China and North Korea.
South Korea is watching closely for any radiation leaks after North Korea detonated its nuclear device, Unification Ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun said in a briefing yesterday. The nation’s nuclear safety commission said it hadn’t detected any so far.
Additional launchers for the US missile shield known as Thaad will be installed in South Korea this afternoon, Yonhap News reported, citing activists at the site. Mr Moon had previously sought to delay its deployment.
Commercial satellite imagery, obtained the day after the test, appears to show numerous landslides throughout the nuclear test site and beyond, according to an analyst report on the 38 North website. The report said there doesn’t appear to be any evidence of a collapse crater.
Meanwhile, in Tokyo, ruling party heavyweight Shigeru Ishiba said yesterday that Japan should review its policy of not allowing the US to bring atomic weapons into its territory.
This would strengthen the deterrence provided by the alliance with the US in the face of the North Korean threat, the lawmaker said.