Moon, Kim hold surprise 2nd summit
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South Korean President Moon Jae-in, right, and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un embrace each other after their second summit on the northern side of Panmunjeom, Saturday. / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae
Moon and Kim shake hands before they start to discuss Kim's possible summit with U.S. President Donald Trump. / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae
Moon Jae-in with South Korea's National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon and Kim Jong-un with North Korea's United Front Department chief Kim Yong-chol / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae
By Park Si-soo
South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday to discuss Kim's possible upcoming summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, Cheong Wa Dae said. It was the second meeting of the two leaders after their first on April 27.
The meeting took place from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the northern side of Panmunjeom, said the presidential office.
President Moon will announce the outcome of the meeting at 10 a.m.
“The two leaders candidly exchanged views about making the North Korea-U.S. summit a successful one and about implementing the Panmunjom Declaration,” said presidential spokesman Yoon Young-chan in a statement. He did not confirm how the meeting was arranged or which side asked for it.
The White House stays silent on the unexpected inter-Korean summit.
Video and photos released by Cheong Wa Dae showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the North’s building in Panmunjeom, which straddles the North-South border.
They were accompanied by South Korean intelligence chief Suh Hoon and his North Korean counterpart Kim Yong-chol, who is in charge of inter-Korean affairs.
Video footage also showed Kim’s sister, Yo-Jong, greeting Moon as he arrived at Tongilgak and shaking hands, before the South Korean leader entered the building flanked by North Korean military guards.
The meeting came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a summit between Trump and Kim following a whirlwind 24 hours that saw Trump cancel the highly anticipated meeting with Kim before saying it's potentially back on.
Trump later tweeted that the summit, if it does happen, will likely take place on June 12 in Singapore as originally planned.