Leaders of North Korea, South Korea meet
Seoul — The two Korean leaders today began formal talks to discuss ways to denuclearize and bring peace to the Korean Peninsula after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a historic border crossing in the demilitarized zone separating the countries.
South Korean President Moon Jae In said “springtime may have arrived on the Korean Peninsula” as he sat down with Kim in the “Peace House” in the border village of Panmunjom.
Taking turns to speak while facing each other over the oval negotiating table made especially for the talks, Kim and Moon both said they were hopeful the summit would produce positive results.
Kim, sitting next to his sister Kim Yo Jong, said the meeting could help “make up for lost time” and said he hoped the talks would help the rival neighbours move forward.
He also joked that he hoped Moon would enjoy the traditional North Korean cold glass noodles brought from Pyongyang for the banquet to be held that evening.
Moon described Kim’s decision to make the historic crossing of the demarcation line as “brave” and a “symbol of peace,” and said he hoped they could work together to make “brave decisions.”
By crossing the military demarcation line, Kim became the first North Korean leader to step foot in South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
Kim shook and held hands with Moon and the two leaders briefly walked back across the line — marked by a row of drab concrete slabs — into North Korea and then walked back into the south.
The smiling pair were then met by a guard of honor wearing traditional Korean costumes and playing Korean music before they entered the Peace House.
There Kim sat down to sign a guestbook in front of a painting of Paektu Mountain, where according to North Korea, Kim’s father Kim Jong Il was born.
The summit will set the tone for a meeting between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump expected to take place late May or early June.
Washington said it hoped today’s encounter would “achieve progress toward a future of peace and prosperity for the entire Korean Peninsula.”
The U.S. “looks forward to continuing robust discussions in preparation for the planned meeting between President Donald J. Trump and Kim Jong Un in the coming weeks,” the White House said in a statement issued shortly after Kim’s arrival.
The White House also released photos of Mike Pompeo, who was on Thursday confirmed as U.S. secretary of state, meeting Kim several weeks ago.
The secret talks between the then CIA director and the North Korean leader took place over the Easter weekend, spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Twitter.
Today’s summit comes after a diplomatic offensive launched by Kim at the beginning of the year. The surprising move has eased tensions over his regime’s aggressive nuclear and missile programmes.
Later in the day, the two Korean leaders will plant a pine tree dating from 1953, before a final agreement is signed and announced.
At 6:30 p.m. they will attend a welcoming banquet where, in addition to the cold noodles, dishes including a Korean version of Swiss roesti (fried shredded potatoes — a nod to Kim’s school days in Switzerland) will be served.
South Korea says the summit is dealing with “the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the establishment of permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula, and the advancement of inter-Korean relations.”
A high-level South Korean government official confirmed last week that both sides also want to discuss a peace treaty to formally end the Korean War.
Kim last week pledged to suspend long-distance missile tests and close an atomic testing site in an announcement that South Korea described as “meaningful progress” that would “create a very positive environment for success” at the summit.
Many experts, however, do not believe that Kim will be willing to relinquish his country’s nuclear arsenal, which he has described as a “treasured sword” and was developed in defiance of UN sanctions and international condemnation.