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January 11, 2019

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S. Korean president praises China

CHINA has played a positive role in denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and improving inter-Korean relations, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in his New Year press conference yesterday.

“Until now, China has played a positive role in helping very much the Korean Peninsula’s denuclearization and the improved inter-Korean relations,” said Moon.

China, he said, has always played a positive role in helping the summits between South Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and between the DPRK and the United States.

The latest summit talks between the top leaders of China and the DPRK are expected to play “a very positive role” for the success of the second summit between Kim and US President Donald Trump, said Moon.

He welcomed the offer by Kim to resume inter-Korean cooperation projects that require the lifting, or at least easing, of international sanctions on the DPRK.

“The Kaesong Industrial Complex and the Mount Kumgang tour project were beneficial to both South and North Korea,” said Moon. “I welcome North Korea’s intention very much to resume (the operations) without any condition and compensation.”

Moon’s remarks came in response to the overtures that Kim made during his New Year’s speech earlier this month.

Kim said he was willing to reopen the inter-Korean factory park in the DPRK’s border town of Kaesong and resume tours by South Koreans to the DPRK’s scenic resort of Mount Kumgang “without any preconditions.”

Moon said that to rapidly resolve the sanctions issue, the DPRK is required to take bold denuclearization actions while the US is required to take corresponding measures.

Moon said that if the second DPRK-US summit is to be held in the near future, Kim and Trump would try to narrow differences.

Regarding Kim’s promise to make a reciprocal visit to Seoul, Moon said the DPRK leader’s first travel to South Korea itself would be a landmark.

Moon expected Kim’s Seoul trip to take place after Kim’s second summit with Trump.

Moon said the second DPRK-US summit and Kim’s trip to Seoul would be a turning point to firmly solidify peace on the peninsula.

He also vowed to tighten South Korea’s guard until the promise to denuclearize the peninsula is kept and peace is fully institutionalized.

Meanwhile, Moon urged Japan to take a humble attitude over history, referring to Japan’s protest against the top court’s ruling on forced labor by Imperial Japan during World War II.

The South Korean Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that two Japanese companies should compensate the South Korean victims who were forced into labor without pay during the Pacific War.


 

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