President Moon reiterates his readiness to meet Kim
SEOUL: South Korea’s president reiterated he’s willing to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un even as he condemned the North’s first intercontinental ballistic missile test-launch this week as a “reckless” move that incurred punishment by the international community.
During a speech on Thursday ahead of yesterday’s launch of the Group of 20 summit in Germany, which he is attending, President Moon Jae-in also proposed the two Koreas resume reunions of families separated by war, stop hostile activities along their heavily fortified border and cooperate on the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
But it is unclear that North Korea would accept any of Mr Moon’s overtures as South Korea is working with the US and others to get the country punished for its ICBM launch on Tuesday.
It i not the first time Mr Moon has talked about a summit with Mr Kim, but repeating that idea two days after the North’s most successful missile test to date clearly indicates he prefers dialogue to applying more pressure or sanctions on the North.
“The current situation where there is no contact between the relevant officials of the South and the North is highly dangerous,” Mr Moon said.
“I am ready to meet with Chairman Kim Jong-un of North Korea at any time at any place, if the conditions are met and if it will provide an opportunity to transform the tension and confrontation on the Korean Peninsula.”
Mr Moon said he and Mr Kim could put all issues on the negotiating table, including the North’s nuclear programme and the signing of a peace treaty to officially end the 1950-53 Korean War.
An armistice that ended the war has yet to be completed with a peace treaty, leaving the Korean Peninsula in a technical state of war.
“I hope that North Korea will not cross the bridge of no return,” Mr Moon said in Thursday’s speech.
“Whether it will come out to the forum for dialogue, or whether it will kick away this opportunity of dialogue that has been made with difficulty is only a decision that North Korea can make.”
After the ICBM launch, Mr Kim issued a statement saying he would never put his weapons programmes up for negotiation unless the US first abandons its hostile policy toward his country.
In a show of force against North Korea, South Korea and the United States staged “deep strike” precision missile firing drills on Wednesday.