 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| . |  |
. |
 By Jerome Taylor and Jung Hawon Seoul (AFP) May 27, 2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is committed to "complete" denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and to a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump, South Korea's leader said Sunday, as Trump announced that plans for the meeting are moving along "very nicely". The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship that had sent tensions soaring. Trump rattled a sabre on Thursday by cancelling the planned June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang. But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials. "It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed." Trump's unpredictability sparked a surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met -- as they scrambled to get the talks back on track. Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations. Moon said Kim reached out to him to arrange the hasty meeting "without any formality", a stunning development given that the Koreas only reopened a defunct hotline between the two nations last month. The North Korean leader described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation. "He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters on Sunday. Moon added that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete denuclearisation" but was uncertain "whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime" if he gave up those weapons. Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will" to meet Trump, adding South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on June 1. - Shaky detente - There was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials was leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place". Trump's original decision to abandon the summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang in a desperate bid to avoid a devastating conflict. Last year Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles which it said were capable of reaching the US mainland. Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang. But the flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks with increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang. There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve. Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief. Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning its deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change. - 'Back on track' - Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a village that straddles the border between the two countries, where the 1953 armistice was signed. The two leaders had met in the same village only last month. Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation. "Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track". In Seoul Sunday most people whom AFP spoke to appeared to welcome Moon's move to talk to Kim. "I think it was a good thing if meeting in person and having a direct conversation about each other's intentions helps us proceed to the next step," said Lee Tae-kyoung. Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that it had taken place. Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South.
Pentagon 'ready to respond' to any N. Korea provocations Washington (AFP) May 24, 2018 The Pentagon is ready to respond to any "provocative actions" from North Korea, an official said Thursday after President Donald Trump canceled a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. "We are in a boxer stance, we are ready to respond," Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie, director of the US military's Joint Staff, told reporters. "We'll see what develops over the next few days. If any provocative actions occur from (North Korea), we will certainly, in concert with our allies and partners ... read more
|
|||||||||||||
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
Google
