By Kim Bo-eun
President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday that North Korea's separate summits with the South and the U.S. could possibly lead to a three-way meeting of the countries.
Moon said, “Depending on the venue, the summits may be more dramatic. Depending on the circumstances, they could lead to a three-way summit between North and South Korea and the U.S.”
He made the remarks at the summit preparation committee's second meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.
The inter-Korean summit will take place at the truce village of Panmunjeom in late April. The venue for the Pyongyang-Washington summit has not yet been decided, but Panmunjeom is one feasible candidate. Moon was implying if the summit was held there, South Korea could join without much difficulty, enabling a three-way meeting.
“Through the upcoming summits and those that will follow, we must put an end to the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula,” the President said.
Moon stated the summits have a clear goal and vision, defining them as: “Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, establishing a system of lasting peace on the peninsula, the normalization of North Korea-US relations, development of inter-Korean relations and economic cooperation between North Korea and the U.S. or among North and South Korea and the U.S.”
He requested the committee to make preparations so that these goals and visions could be achieved and called for it to share them with Washington.
Meanwhile, Seoul will propose to Pyongayng, Thursday, holding a third high-level meeting at Tongilgak on the North's side of Panmunjeom, March 29, to arrange the details of the April summit.
“The date, agenda and composition of delegates will be addressed. We will send Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon as the chief delegate, along with one official each from Cheong Wa Dae and the National Intelligence Service,” presidential office spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said. The two officials have yet to be decided on.
The date of the high-level meeting was selected, so that it would not coincide with a South Korean performance troupe's visit to Pyongyang from March 31 to April 3, a Cheong Wa Dae official said.
In the meantime, South Korea's nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon has been added to a subcommittee in charge of developing the agenda for the summit, according to the foreign ministry, Tuesday.
Lee's presence is seen as a sign that denuclearization will be seriously addressed at the inter-Korean summit.
The summit preparation committee stated it would facilitate reporting for journalists. During the summit at the House of Peace on the South's side of Panmunjeom, a press room will be set up nearby and a large-scale press center will be created at the KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.
Interpreters and translators, as well as experts on inter-Korean affairs will be available at the site to assist the foreign press, the committee said.
President Moon ordered preparations to be made so that agreements reached between the leaders of the North and South in April, as well as those made in two previous summits are ratified at the National Assembly, to ensure they are put into effect.
“Only through these means will the agreements be put into effect, even if the political situation changes,” Moon said
Cheong Wa Dae also confirmed that it is seeking a three-way summit with the leaders of China and Japan to take place in early May.
On Tuesday, Japan's Kyodo News reported that the three states had agreed for a summit to take place within the first half of May in Tokyo.