North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gave credit to South Korean President Moon Jae-in for his “tireless effort” in bring together Pyongyang and Washington to the negotiations table, as he met with Moon for a meeting Tuesday.
(Joint Press Corps)
“There was big progress, and it is thanks to Moon’s tireless effort. North Korea-South Korea relations, and North Korea-US relations saw an improvement,” Kim said at an opening speech before the first official meeting of the third inter-Korean summit.
“President Moon has ignited the spark of the historic talks between Joseon (North Korea) and the US. It is no exaggeration to say that the Joseon-US meeting is all thanks to President Moon. We are expecting a stabilization of the region and more advanced results (from the summit),” he added.
In return, Moon hailed Kim’s “bold” decision to open a “new era” for the progress so far achieved.
Moon was instrumental in facilitating the first-ever meeting between the leaders of North Korea and the US. Kim and US President Donald Trump held a historic summit in Singapore in June, in which Kim promised to work toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
However, denuclearization talks have shown little progress since, with Moon seeking to facilitate the stalled talks between North Korea and the US by helping them find middle ground during his meeting with Kim.
By Ock Hyun-ju & Joint Press Corps
