South Korea's foreign minister has renewed her call for a peaceful and diplomatic resolution of North Korea's nuclear issue, strongly opposing any military action that could lead to a second war on the Korean Peninsula.
In an interview with US broadcaster NBC, Kang Kyung-wha said military options are "there to give strength to diplomacy," not to be used against the North.
"Another war on the Korean Peninsula must not happen," Kang said during the interview in Seoul that was posted on its Web site and later aired on NBC Nightly News. "A resolution to the North Korean nuclear issue must be pursued in a peaceful, diplomatic manner."
The interview came just ahead of US President Donald Trump's planned visit to Seoul on Tuesday following his trip to Japan.
Trump is to stay here for two days during which he plans to have a summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.