South Korean envoys meet Kim Jong Un to bolster nuclear diplomacy
Seoul is also attempting to arrange a summit with its northern neighbour.
A South Korean delegation has met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to arrange this month’s inter-Korean summit and to help rescue faltering nuclear diplomacy between Washington and Pyongyang.
The office of South Korean president Moon Jae-in said the envoys, led by his national security adviser, delivered a personal letter from him to Mr Kim and “exchanged opinions” on unspecified issues.
It is not clear whether the Korean officials fixed a date for a third summit this year between Mr Moon and Mr Kim or made any progress in breaking an impasse between the North and the US over dismantling the North’s nuclear weapons programme.
Earlier, they met Kim Yong Chol, a former spy chief who has been negotiating with the United States on nuclear issues, and Ri Son Gwon, chairman of the North’s agency that handles inter-Korean affairs, at Pyongyang’s Koryo hotel.
Mr Moon’s office is planning to hold a briefing on the visit on Thursday.
The South Korean leader, who discussed his plans with US president Donald Trump by telephone on Tuesday, said before the trip that his envoys are tasked with a crucial role at a “very important time” that could determine the prospects for lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Seoul also wants a trilateral summit between the countries, or a four-nation meeting that also includes Beijing, to declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.
The UN General Assembly in late September would be an ideal date for Seoul, but many analysts consider the chances of this happening to be low, considering the complications of the process and how far apart the parties currently are.
US officials have insisted that a peace declaration, which many see as a precursor to the North eventually calling for the removal of all US troops from the Korean Peninsula, cannot come before North Korea takes more concrete action towards abandoning its nuclear weapons.
Such steps may include providing an account of the components of its nuclear programme, allowing outside inspections and giving up a certain number of its nuclear weapons during the early stages of the negotiations.
