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The leaders of North Korea and South Korea on Wednesday announced a wide range of agreements that they said were an important step towards peace on the Korean peninsula. But the first commitment to denuclearization was a big one, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un saying he would definitely dismantle his main nuclear complex only if the United States took corresponding unspecified measures.
Compared to the vague language of their two summits earlier this year, Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed on their second day of meeting an ambitious program to deal with high tensions in the United States. Last year. chain of weapons more and more powerful.
Kim has promised to accept international inspectors overseeing the closure of a missile test site and launch pad and will soon be traveling to Seoul. The two leaders promised to work together to organize the Summer Olympics in 2032.
But, while containing several tantalizing offers, their joint statement seemed to fall short of the milestones sought by Washington – as Kim's pledge to provide a list of North Korean nuclear facilities, a detailed step-by-step schedule. to close them, or an agreement to allow international inspectors to assess progress or discover violations.
It is also difficult to know what "corresponding measures" North Korea wants from the United States to dismantle its nuclear site.
The question is whether it will be enough for the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to take over from Moon. Trump, tweeting about the agreements of the Korean leaders, said: "Very exciting!"
Declaring to have taken a big step towards peace, Moon and Kim stood side by side as they announced the joint declaration to a group of North Korean and South Korean journalists after a closed meeting on Wednesday morning. They did not ask any questions.
"We agreed to make the Korean peninsula a land of peace free of nuclear weapons and nuclear threat," Kim said at Moon's guest house. "The path to our future will not always be easy and we are likely to face unpredictable challenges and trials, but we are not afraid of headwinds as our strength will increase with each event."
Kim and Moon had previously smiled and discussed as they walked down a hallway and into a meeting room to finalize the joint statement, also claiming that the leaders would seek a Korean peninsula without nuclear weapons and "eliminate the danger of war". Moon and Kim plan to visit a sacred volcano north on Thursday, the last day of Moon's visit.
The summit this week comes as Washington is increasingly under pressure from Washington to find a way forward for Kim to completely and unilaterally abandon his nuclear arsenal.
Trump maintained that he and Kim have a solid relationship, and both leaders expressed interest in a follow-up summit at their June meeting in Singapore. North Korea is officially calling for a declaration to end the Korean War, which was halted in 1953 by a ceasefire, but none of the leaders mentioned it on Wednesday as they read the joint statement.
Meanwhile, Moon and Kim have made concrete gestures to reduce tensions on their border.
According to a statement signed by the defense chiefs of both countries, the two Koreas have agreed to establish buffer zones along their land and sea borders to reduce military tensions and prevent accidental clashes. They also agreed to remove 11 guard posts from the demilitarized zone by December and to establish a no-fly zone over the military dividing line that cuts across the two Koreas that will apply to aircraft, helicopters and drones.
Although not directly related to security, the announcement by leaders of their intention to participate in the joint Summer Olympic Games is an important step in terms of reducing tensions and building confidence. This also stems from the Northern decision to participate in the Pyeongchang Winter Games in February, which were considered a success for both parties.
Other agreements aimed to eliminate some longstanding irritants of their relationships, such as allowing more contact between families divided by the Korean War. Moon also seemed to use his proposals to help build northern infrastructure and open cross-border rail links.
In contrast to Trump's first tweets praising the summit, the news sparked a quick and negative response from Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who said he feared the visit would undermine the secretary's efforts. State Mike Pompeo and "on the north.
"While North Korea stopped testing missiles and nuclear devices, they did NOT opt for denuclearization," he tweeted.
While the main activity of the day was over, North Korea had to organize a big mass game show in the evening, with Moon as a special guest. Seoul said Moon would make a brief speech.
North Korea had created emblematic games, featuring tens of thousands of performers dancing and billboarding, to create mosaics and giant slogans on their backs for several years. . In a performance for the birthday, a giant photo of Moon and Kim shaking hands at their first summit in April was screened from one side of the stands at Pyongyang's May Day Stadium, which counts 150 000 places.
Kim did everything to make Moon's visit memorable.
On Tuesday, the first day of the summit, he welcomed Moon and his wife to Pyongyang airport, then entered the city with Moon in an open limo through the streets lined with North Korean crowds. blue and white flag that symbolizes Korean unity.
At the beginning of their meeting, Kim thanked Moon for negotiating the June summit with Trump.
"It is not enough to say that it was Moon's efforts that organized a historic North-North American summit, which is why the regional political situation has stabilized and further progress is expected." said Kim. The South Korean media pool reports and Moon's office.
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