Moon may visit Singapore during Trump-Kim summit
President Moon Jae-in holds a press briefing on his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at Cheong Wa Dae, Saturday. / Yonhap
By Park Ji-won
President Moon Jae-in may visit Singapore while the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is taking place there next month, a Cheong Wa Dae official said Monday.
Moon's possible visit, however, hinges on how dialogue between the U.S. and North Korea unfolds, the official said.
This prompted speculation that the two Korean leaders and the U.S. leader may jointly declare a formal end to the Korean War in Singapore depending on the outcome of the Kim-Trump summit.
“(The success of making an announcement of ending the war through a trilateral summit) is dependent on the result of the North-U.S. summit,” the official said when asked about Moon preparing to go to Singapore.
The official added that “there are two issues on the summit table; denuclearization and ensuring the security of the North Korean regime. The declaration of the end of the (Korean) war is part of guaranteeing the North Korean regime.”
“We can forecast the success of the Kim-Trump summit based on the outcomes of the high ranking meetings between the North and the U.S., which are now being held in Panmunjeom, that also can be connected with holding a trilateral summit between the two Koreas and the U.S.”
President Moon Jae-in in his Sunday press conference talked about making a declaration of putting an end to the war on the Korean Peninsula through a trilateral summit between the South, the North and the U.S. after the success of the Kim-Trump summit.
Some critics also anticipated the announcement of terminating the War status following the Kim-Trump summit based on the fact that Moon didn't mention anything about a quadrilateral agreement after having talks with Trump.
“I think there could be the announcement of ending the War after the June 12 summit,” National security strategy senior researcher Cho Sung-ryul was quoted as saying to CBS radio.
“President Moon has mentioned ending the war through a trilateral agreement after the Moon-Trump summit which has been trilateral or quadrilateral connected to the Pamunjeom Declaration.”
“Previously, Trump said on Twitter that he can change the summit date with Kim. That possibly means President Moon and Trump talked about ending the war during the summit on May 22 and Moon and Kim talked about it Saturday. ”
However, South Korean government officials remain cautious in giving a clear answer to questions; that is likely part of Moon's moves to play a mediation role between Kim and Trump.
During a press briefing Sunday in London, Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said that “talks between the North and the U.S. may not go as far as discussing ending the Korean War” when asked if President Moon would travel to Singapore.
“President Moon is considering the next step after a successful summit between Kim and Trump. Talking about everything now might complicate things.”