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| President Moon Jae-in, right, shakes hands with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern before their bilateral summit held at the Auckland Cordis Hotel in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday (KST). Yonhap |
By Kim Yoo-chul
AUCKLAND, New Zealand ― North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's visit to Seoul, if realized, could help accelerate denuclearization of the North, President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday (KST).
In a joint press conference following his summit with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Moon also said Kim's visit would lead to a successful second summit between the North Korean leader and U.S. President Donald Trump, expected to be held early next year.
"There is a possibility that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could come to Seoul before the end of the year. If this happens, it would be the first time for a leader from the North to officially visit South Korea," Moon said.
"The timing of Kim Jong-un's visit to Seoul doesn't matter as what really matters is how to advance the denuclearization talks. I hope Kim's visit to Seoul will provide greater momentum for that."
Moon pledged to convey messages to Washington and Pyongyang to mediate and persuade the two sides to achieve substantial progress at the summit between Kim and Trump.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the Oceania country will continue to support Moon's engagement-driven North Korea policy aimed at improving inter-Korean relations.
She said New Zealand was hoping North Korea would fully and verifiably dismantle its nuclear arsenal, but stressed that full implementation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions would continue to be essential until Pyongyang completely abandons its nuclear program.
Ardern said New Zealand would not be receptive to any calls to ease sanctions. New Zealand is active in the monitoring of UNSC sanctions against North Korea, deploying an Air Force P-3K2 plane recently to patrol international waters in the Pacific Ocean for signs of vessels engaging in forbidden activities such as ship-to-ship transfers.
"For our part, we have supported UNSC sanctions and actively so by monitoring sanctions using capabilities. So in that regard we've certainly been active participants in upholding the sanctions that have been mandated by the UNSC," Ardern said.
The two also agreed to endorse and promote a "rules-based" international trading system and reaffirmed joint efforts to fight climate change, though President Trump has upended traditional diplomacy by instigating trade wars and employing aggressive protectionist policies.
Moon said South Korea reached a broad consensus with the Oceania country to level up bilateral relations to address key pending diplomatic and economic issues.
At the conference, Moon and Ardern said they discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties in innovative technology business sectors.
"South Korea supports New Zealand's Pacific Reset Policy and Ardern said she supports South Korea's New Southern Policy, both of which will be beneficial for each other in terms of expanding diplomatic diversification," Moon said.
