'Peace, A New Future' to be slogan for 3rd inter-Korean summit

SEOUL – The leaders of North and South Korea will meet from September 18-20 at the first inter-Korean summit to be held in Pyeongyang, the North Korean capital, in 11 years. The talks will revolve around a slogan: “Peace, A New Future”.

Reports in South Korea said North Korea's Chairman of State Affairs, Kim Jong Un, has reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and said that North Korea would work closely together with both South Korea and the U.S. to accomplish that goal.

The two sides have also agreed to open a joint liaison office at the Gaesong Industrial Complex before the Pyeongyang summit.

South Korea’s Director of National Security, Chung Eui-yong, who led President Moon Jae-in’s team of special envoys to Pyeongyang, said discussions at the summit would centre on issues concerning the permanent settlement of peace and common prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, “as well as, in particular, practical measures to realise denuclearisation on the peninsula”.

He said:  “The two sides also agreed to continue to make progress on the ongoing inter-Korean talks to ease military tension, and to reach an agreement at the inter-Korean summit on concrete plans to establish mutual trust and to prevent military clashes.“

President Moon Jae-in has said he is pushing for “irrevocable” progress on efforts to bring about denuclearisation and a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula by the end of this year.

He said he wants to see “a declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War being made within this year, which marks the 65th anniversary of the armistice, as part of trust-building measures among concerned countries”.  www.koreanet.kr (ATI).