The South Korean and US defense and foreign affairs chiefs reaffirmed the need for close cooperation between the two countries in resolving North Korean nuclear issues. According to Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held their first telephone conversation on Saturday.In the conversation, Kang briefed Pompeo on the results of the inter-Korean summit, and discussed plans for a South Korea-US summit meeting in the near future.

North Korea will shut down its nuclear weapons testing facility in May, and allow inspection by South Korean and US experts and media, Cheong Wa Dae revealed Sunday. “(North Korean leader Kim Jong-un) said during the summit talks with President Moon Jae-in that the shutdown of the facility in the north of the country will be carried out in May,” Cheong Wa Dae senior public relations secretary Yoon Young-chan said. Senior presidential public relations secretary Yoon Young-chan speaks at a press b

President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump held a telephone conversation on Saturday, Cheong Wa Dae said. Seoul’s presidential office did not elaborate on the conversation, which lasted from 9:15 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. (Korea time).A file photograph from Feb. 15 shows President Moon Jae-in having a telephone conversation. Cheong Wa DaeTrump, however, hinted that the conversation was about North Korea. Shortly after the telephone conversation, Trump commented that related developments were “

Regional powers welcomed Friday’s Panmunjeom Declaration, but advised caution. US President Donald Trump reacted quickly to the developments with tweets. 　“After a furious year of missile launches and Nuclear testing, a historic meeting between North and South Korea is now taking place. Good things are happening, but only time will tell!” Trump wrote on Twitter, just over an hour after the declaration was announced on Friday.  US President Donald Trump (Yonhap)　The US leader, who had given “his

Friday’s Panmunjeom Declaration is being met by strikingly different assessments from the country’s political parties. 　The ruling Democratic Party, as expected, is praising the agreement signed by President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, hailing it as a “historical feat.”　“(The declaration) will be recorded as a historical feat that was a turning point not only in inter-Korean relations but for the political situation on the Korean Peninsula,” a Democratic Party spokesperson s

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, accompanied by his top aides and wife Ri Sol-ju, returned to the North around 9:27 p.m., drawing to a close Friday’s inter-Korean summit.Following the summit, which began at 9:27 a.m. at Panmunjeom, the two sides issued the Panmunjeom Declaration that outlines measures to reduce military tension and increase inter-Korean cooperation. (Captured from YTN)President Moon Jae-in and his top aides reiterated that the summit served to confirm Kim’s will for denucleariza

The two Koreas will cease hostilities and seek increased cooperation and denuclearization as part of the declaration announced following an inter-Korean summit at Panmunjeom. The Panmunjeom Declaration, revealed after a daylong summit and related events, outlines measures for improving inter-Korean relations including executing previously agreed measures and holding high-level talks regarding diverse areas. The two Koreas also said they would seek a peace treaty and hold three-way negotiations w

Seoul and Pyongyang will seek multilateral talks aimed at signing a peace treaty, easing military tension and cooperating toward denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, the two Koreas’ joint Panmunjeom Declaration states.The declaration, drew up after a day of summit talks between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, also states that Moon will visit Pyongyang later in the year, and that a reunion of families separated by the Korean War will be arranged. 1. South and North will

President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held their first summit on Friday, discussing denuclearization, establishing peace and other outstanding inter-Korean issues. The daylong event began at 9:29 a.m. at the Military Demarcation Line, where the two leaders shook hands on both the South’s and North’s sides of the border. Kim then walked across the line that divides the two Koreas, becoming the first North Korean leader to set foot south of the border.The initial greeting was f

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s wife Ri Sol-ju will arrive at Panmunjeom at about 6:15 p.m. to join President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook for a state dinner, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.According to Moon’s Senior Public Relations Secretary Yoon Young-chan, Ri will arrive separately, and hold a brief conversation with Moon and Kim Jung-sook, along with her husband.  North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju wave from a car as they bid farewell to Chinese counterpart Xi J

Shaking hands at the Military Demarcation Line“(You) are coming to the South, when will I be able to visit the North?” Moon asked. “Let’s step over now,” Kim Jong-un said, leading Moon across the Military Demarcation Line. Walking to the Peace House escorted by South Korea’s traditional ceremonial guard “Foreigners like out traditional ceremonial guard. It is a shame that today’s ceremonial guard has been simplified. A much better scene could be displayed (if Kim Jong-un) came to Cheong Wa Dae,”

The morning session of the inter-Korean summit ended at 11:55 a.m. The summit meeting will continue in the afternoon.For the lunch break, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his aides returned to the North. After the break, President Moon Jae-in and Kim will take part in a tree planting ceremony, designed to symbolize unity, Cheong Wa Dae said. (Yonhap) The two leaders will plant a pine tree that germinated in 1953, the year the Korean War was halted in an armistice. The tree will be planted usi

The third inter-Korean summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un began at 10:15 a.m. on Friday at the Peace House on the South’s side of Panmunjeom. This is the first time a North Korean leader has set foot south of the border since before the 1950-53 Korean War. (Cheong Wa Dae)(Yonhap)At the summit table, Moon was flanked by his chief of staff Im Jong-seok and National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon. Kim was accompanied by Kim Yong-chol and his sister Kim

President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un began the official proceedings of the day-long summit meeting, with the two leaders inspecting the South Korean military honor guard at 9:34 a.m.  (Cheong Wa Dae) (Cheong Wa Dae) (Cheong Wa Dae)Moon and Kim met at the Military Demarcation Line at 9:29 a.m., and walked to the plaza outside the Peace House escorted by South Korea’s traditional ceremonial guard. This is the first time a North Korean leader has reviewed the South’s military h

President Moon Jae-in greeted North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as he crossed the border into South Korea at 9:28 a.m. for their first summit talks at Panmunjeom. This is the first time a North Korean leader has set foot south of the border since before the 1950-53 Korean War, and the first inter-Korean summit since 2007.Prior to Friday, inter-Korean summits were held in 2000 and 2007. In the first inter-Korean summit, South Korea was represented by President Kim Dae-jung, and in the latter by Pre

The inter-Korean summit will kick off with President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un meeting at the Military Demarcation Line in Panmunjeom at 9:30 a.m. Friday.The two leaders will then attend a welcome ceremony and begin their meeting at the South’s Peace House at about 10:30 a.m., Moon’s chief of staff Im Jong-seok said Thursday. The welcome ceremony will include a review of South Korea’s honor guard, which has been arranged as the North had arranged honor guard reviews for lat

North Korea’s advanced missile and nuclear technologies make the issue of denuclearization at Friday’s inter-Korean summit fundamentally different from earlier agreements, a top Cheong Wa Dae official said Thursday.Speaking at the inter-Korean summit press center in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, President Moon Jae-in’s chief of staff Im Jong-seok said that while denuclearization is central to Friday’s summit, the level of agreement possible remains unclear. Im Jong-seok, South Koera`s presidential

The inclusion of top military and diplomatic officials in North Korea’s delegation to the inter-Korean summit could be an indication of Pyongyang’s long-term plans, a top South Korean official said Thursday. In addition to party officials, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will be accompanied by chief of the General Staff of the Korean People‘s Army Ri Myong-su and Minister of People’s Armed Forces Pak Yong-sik. The delegation will also include Foreign Minsiter Ri Yong-ho and Ri Son-gwon, chairman

President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will meet at the Military Demarcation Line in Panmunjeom at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Moon’s chief of staff Im Jong-seok said Thursday. According to Im, Kim will be greeted by Moon as he crosses the Military Demarcation Line. “The two leaders will meet at the MDL, and walk to the venue of the welcoming ceremony, escorted by our (South Korean) traditional honor guard,” Im said. Peace House, Panmunjeom (Yonhap)Im said that the two leaders will then

President Moon Jae-in may suggest establishing a joint inter-Korean communications office during Friday’s meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, local media reported Wednesday.According to reports citing unnamed Cheong Wa Dae officials, Moon could make the suggestion, and if accepted, the office is likely to be set up at Panmunjeom, where Friday’s summit will take place. The Peace House on the South Korean side of Panmunjeom, a possible site of an inter-Korean communications office. Yonha