Moon, Trump discuss Korean Peninsula issues

SEOUL - ROK President Moon Jae-in had an almost hourlong phone conversation with US President Donald Trump on Monday about the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's nuclear and missile programs.

Moon said the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula should be resolved in a peaceful, diplomatic manner, based on close cooperation between the Republic of Korea and the United States, Moon spokesman Park Soohyun said.

The conversation lasted for 56 minutes.

Moon said the peninsula can tolerate no more of the horrors of war.

It is technically still in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.

On July 28, the DPRK launched an intercontinental ballistic missile, which flew about 1,000 kilometers and as high as 3,700 km.

Moon urged joint efforts, including heavy pressure and sanctions, to encourage Pyongyang to return to talks about dismantling its nuclear program.

On Saturday, the United Nations Security Council adopted new sanctions on the DPRK because of its recent ballistic missile test launches. The sanctions ban exports of seafood and minerals such as coal, iron, iron ore, lead and lead ore.

Moon said they needed to show Pyongyang that a door for dialogue will be open when the DPRK makes the right choice, to give up its nuclear program.

Pyongyang said in a statement on Monday that it is ready to give the United States a "severe lesson" with its strategic nuclear force if it takes military action against it, Reuters reported.

Top diplomats from Seoul and Pyongyang had a brief encounter on Sunday in Manila, Philippines, on the sidelines of a series of foreign ministers' meetings on East Asian cooperation, Yonhap News Agency reported on Monday. That meeting was the first since the new ROK administration took office on May 11.

Moon also had a phone conversation with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

During the talks, Moon reiterated that the peninsula issues should be resolved through negotiations, adding that Seoul, Tokyo and Washington should discuss strategic measures to encourage Pyongyang to enter into dialogue.

Abe said in response that finally having talks would be the natural way to resolve the issues, but he said it would be necessary to put pressure on the DPRK to make it positively respond to the dialogue

Xinhua

(China Daily USA 08/08/2017 page1)