In his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, Kim reiterated that denuclearization of the peninsula is the “will of the ancestors,” but called on Seoul and Washington to take progressive steps.

The surprise meeting between Kim and Xi was held in Beijing, marking Kim’s first trip outside North Korea since taking power in 2011. His visit was confirmed by Chinese and North Korean media on Wednesday.

Kim was accompanied by his wife Ri Sol-ju, and top-ranking officials including Choe Ryong-hae and Kim Yong-chol.

Choe is the vice chairman of the North Korean ruling party’s central committee, and Kim Yong-chol is a ranking party official who is suspected of masterminding a number of attacks on South Korea.

“The issue of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula can be resolved, if South Korea and the United States respond to our efforts with goodwill, create an atmosphere of peace and stability while taking progressive and synchronous measures for the realization of peace,” Kim Jong-un was quoted as saying by the Chinese Xinhua News Agency.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, is seen talking with Chinese President Xi Jinping on March 28. (Yonhap)

The “progressive and synchronous measures” are likely a reference to compromise on the part of Seoul and Washington, which the allies have ruled out without verifiable and irreversible denuclearization.

North Korea has long called for the cessation of joint South Korea-US military drills, saying that US military presence is detrimental to stability in the region and a direct threat to the regime. Pyongyang has also threatened retaliation against the US, claiming that international sanctions are an “act of war.”

The efforts made by North Korea include offering to meet with South Korean and US leaders, and to halt nuclear and missile tests while related processes are underway.

Kim is set to meet President Moon Jae-in at the end of April, and US President Donald Trump sometime in May.

Regardless of the implications of Kim’s comments, Cheong Wa Dae is taking the related developments as a positive sign ahead of the summits.

“Kim’s comments from the summit (with Xi), such as that denuclearization is the will of his ancestors, signal positive effects for the inter-Korean and US-North Korea summits,” a high-level Cheong Wa Dae official said on condition of anonymity.

He added that Cheong Wa Dae would elaborate on its position after Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi’s visit to Seoul, and that the presidential office is handling North Korea-related issues with “all possibilities in mind.”

According to Cheong Wa Dae, Yang will brief Seoul officials on the Kim-Xi meeting on Thursday when he visits as Xi’s special representative. During his stay, Yang is to meet with Moon and his National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong.

(Yonhap)

“During his visit (Yang) will provide a detailed account of the North Korea-China summit, and discuss current issues in South Korea-China relations including denuclearization of the peninsula,” said Yoon Young-chan, Moon’s chief press secretary.

Although Cheong Wa Dae remains tightlipped, the presidential office is said to have had information on the Kim-Xi meeting.

Beijing is said to have informed Seoul of Kim’s visit at some point between Saturday and Tuesday.

Seoul’s presidential office declined to pinpoint when it was informed of Kim’s trip to China, saying only that Moon was briefed on the developments while in the United Arab Emirates. Moon was in the UAE from Saturday until Tuesday.

The White House also revealed that China notified the US of Kim’s visit on Tuesday (US EST), According to White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, the Chinese government also relayed a personal message from Xi to Trump.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)

South Korea’s national security adviser, Chung Eui-yong, told reporters at the White House on Frinday morning (Korean time) that Trump told him he would accept Kim’s invitation to meet with him as soon as possible.

The announcement is expected to greatly change the security condition on the Korean Peninsula gripped by a year of tensions over North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, and US President Donald Trump (AP)

Chung, along with National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon, traveled to Washington the previous day to discuss the results of their recent trip to Pyongyang.

During their North Korean trip, the South Korean officials met with North Korean leader Kim, and announced a series of inter-Korean agreements.

The key agreement stated that the two Koreas will hold a summit at the end of April, the North will cease missile and nuclear tests for the time being, and that Kim is willing to talk to the US.

Seoul has already publicized that North Korea offered talks with the United States on denuclearization and normalizing ties, a potential diplomatic opening after a year of escalating tensions over the North’s nuclear and missile tests. The rival Koreas also agreed to hold a leadership summit in late April.

(AP)

Top Trump administration officials got a chance to hear firsthand from South Korean national security director Chung, who led the delegation that went to Pyongyang and met Kim on Monday.

Chung told reporters on Tuesday that he received a message from North Korea intended for the United States, but didn’t disclose what it was. According to Chung, the North also agreed to suspend nuclear and missile tests during such future talks — a longstanding US demand.

On Tuesday, Trump had expressed both hope and skepticism about the reported offer of talks, which has yet to be confirmed, at least publicly, by the isolated North Korean government. While the path to a diplomatic resolution over the North’s nuclear arsenal would be long and difficult, talks could dampen fears of war breaking out over what represents an emerging threat to the US mainland.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Thursday in Ethiopia that the US has seen “potentially positive signals” from North Korea, but the adversaries are still a long way from holding negotiations.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com) and news reports

South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in plans to meet Kim on the South’s side of the Panmunjeom truce village as part of the recently reached inter-Korean agreement.

The announcement regarding Trump’s decision was made by Seoul’s National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong at the White House following his meeting with Trump and his top aides.

“President Trump appreciated the briefing and said he would meet Kim Jong-un by May to achieve permanent denuclearization,” Chung said.

South Korean National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong talks with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday (US local time). (Yonhap)

Chung had met with Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, as well as Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, to explain the results of his meeting with Kim on Monday.

Chung said that he briefed Trump on Kim’s promises, including that he is “committed to denuclearization.” Chung also said that the North Korean leader “expressed his eagerness to meet President Trump as soon as possible.”

Moon welcomed the developments.

“(The process of achieving) A complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula will be on track if a meeting between the two leaders (Kim and Trump) follows the inter-Korean summit,” Moon said.

“The May meeting will be recorded as a historic milestone in achieving peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

Moon also thanked Kim and Trump for their decision, going on to praise the US leader saying that his “leadership will be praised by South and North Koreans, and people of the world who wish for peace.”

(Yonhap)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe welcomed the developments, but advised caution and said that pressure will remain until visible steps towards denuclearization are made.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Abe said that he “appreciates this change,“ referring to the North’s apparently willingness to discuss denuclearization with the US.

He added that the development is the result of the international community‘s continuation of high-level pressure.”

According to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom, Chung’s meeting with Trump was initially planned for Saturday, Korea time, but was brought forward at the US leader’s request.

At the meeting Chung quoted Kim Jong-un as saying “significant results could be achieved if (I) speak to President Trump in person,” the Cheong Wa Dae spokesman said. According to Kim Eui-kyeom, Trump immediately accepted the invitation to meet, and stressed that he has always emphasized the need for dialogue.

The spokesman also revealed that Chung did not deliver a letter from the North Korean leader, and that there has been no talk of special envoys between Pyongyang and Washington.

Moon, meanwhile, appointed Chief of Staff Im Jong-seok as the head of the inter-Korean summit preparation committee.

“The main task of the preparation committee is to draw up an agreement for the April summit meeting,” Kim Eui-kyeom said. He added that the committee will also take part in high-level talks that will be held in the run up to the summit meeting.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)

President Moon Jae-in’s special envoys to North Korea on Monday met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, feeding speculations about possible dialogue with the US.

According to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom, the South Korean delegation was received by Kim at a dinner reception that began at 6 p.m., South Korea time. North Korean time is 30 minutes behind.

Kim Eui-kyeom said that the delegation, led by National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, arrived at a Pyongyang airport at 2:50 p.m. and was met by Ri Son-gwon, chairman of North Korea’s Committee for Peaceful Reunification, at the airport.

South Korean envoys including National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong (third from left) meet with North Korean officials including Kim Yong-chol (second from right) in Pyongyang on Monday. Cheong Wa Dae

The five-member envoy delegation then met with Vice Chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party Kim Yong-chol at their accommodation, where they hammered out their itinerary including the dinner meeting with Kim Jong-un. Following the special envoys’ departure, local media had speculated about the timing of their meeting with the North Korean leader.

Ahead of his departure, Chung said that he intends to convey Moon’s will for denuclearization and seek ways to discuss denuclearization.

“I will clearly deliver President Moon’s intent to maintain the flow of inter-Korean dialogue and improving relations to obtain permanent peace and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” Chung, who leads the delegation as the chief special envoy, said earlier in the day.

The envoys left from the Seoul Airport, south of Seoul, at 2 p.m. aboard a South Korean Air Force passenger carrier.

Chung Eui-yong, chief of Cheong Wa Dae`s national security office (right) and Suh Hoon, the chief of South Korea`s spy agency head to the airplane bound for Pyongyang at the Seoul Air Base south of Seoul on Monday. Yonhap

Along with Chung, National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon, Vice Minister of Unification Chun Hae-sung, senior National Intelligence Service Director Kim Sang-gyun, and Yun Kun-young, a Cheong Wa Dae official have been sent as special envoys. The envoys were also accompanied by five working-level officials.

“To this end, (the special envoys) plan to discuss ways to continue inter-Korean talks, as well as dialogue between the North and the US, and the international society,” Chung said.

Chung’s comments regarding the US fall in line with earlier comments from a high-level Cheong Wa Dae official who described Seoul’s role in the matter as “matchmaking” between Pyongyang and Washington.

Chung said that his visit is in response to the North Korean special envoy’s visit to the South last month. The North Korean leader had included his sister Kim Yo-jong as his special envoy in the high-level delegation to the PyeongChang Olympics opening ceremony. During her visit, the younger Kim invited Moon to Pyongyang.

This is the seventh time special envoys have been sent to the North since the 1950-53 Korean War, and the first time Seoul has made the news public. Cheong Wa Dae first revealed Moon’s plans to send envoys after his telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump on Thursday, and the envoys were named Sunday.

In revealing the envoys, Cheong Wa Dae also said that the envoys will visit the US soon after their return from Pyongyang to brief US officials on the results.

In addition to briefing US officials, Seoul is seeking means to cooperate with China and Japan on related matters.

A high-level Cheong Wa Dae official said that Chinese and Japanese governments will be informed about the results of the North Korean and US visits through “appropriate means.”

The first of the previous six envoys, all sent in secret, was sent in 1972 under the Park Chung-hee administration. Both the Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo administrations that followed sent special envoys but failed to arrange an inter-Korean summit. In 2000, Rep. Park Jie-won, now of the minor opposition Party for Democracy and Peace, was tasked with negotiating an inter-Korean summit. Park was then serving as the culture minister under the Kim Dae-jung administration.

The Roh Moo-hyun administration sent two special envoys — in 2005 and 2007. The first was to bring North Korea back to the six-party talks on denuclearization, and the second was to arrange the second inter-Korean summit.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)

Seoul’s sports minister also said if the two sides agree on a joint entrance at the opening ceremony, the athletes would march under the “Korean Unification” flag — a white flag with a blue shape of the Korean Peninsula in the center.

The North’s move, which came earlier in the day, came in response to South Korea’s offer Friday to arrange formal talks. Seoul said it would send a three-member delegation led by Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung. “South Korea has agreed to North Korea’s proposal to hold working-level talks at 10 a.m. at the Peace House (in Panmunjeom) on Jan. 17, through the South-North communication channel at 4 p.m.,” the ministry said in a statement.

The North will send a three-member delegation headed by Jon Jong-su, vice chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country, added the ministry. The CPRC handles inter-Korean affairs within the North Korean government.

Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon told reporters on Monday morning that there was “high possibility” of further working-level talks this week, before a separate meeting in Lausanne. Both the South and North will attend a meeting Saturday with IOC officials in Lausanne, Switzerland, where the IOC’s headquarters are located.

The two Koreas’ ongoing exchanges on the North’s participation in the Winter Games follows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s New Year’s address during which he expressed willingness to dispatch a delegation to the Olympics in February.

Triggered by the young dictator’s words, high-level talks were held on Jan. 9, and the North agreed to send athletes, high-ranking officials, cheerleaders, an art troupe, taekwondo demonstration teams and journalists to the Olympics.

On Wednesday, the two sides are expected to map out a travel route for the North Koreans coming to PyeongChang in Gangwon Province.

They are most likely to cross the border by land, as traveling by air or ship could violate international sanctions imposed on the North. South Korea’s unilateral sanction bans any vessel that has sailed to North Korea within the past 12 months from entering its waters, and the US has blacklisted Air Koryo, the North’s state airline.

The possibility of inviting high-ranking delegates, who are blacklisted, is expected to be raised as well.

The issue of a “joint march” is forecast to gain more attention, with Seoul’s Sports Minister Do Jong-hwan hinting at the possibility of marching under the Korean Unification Flag.

“The discussion is still ongoing, but the Korean Unification flag will be raised at the opening when a joint entrance is agreed upon,” Do said during a meeting with lawmakers at the National Assembly,

South Korea has also proposed a joint march, in which athletes of the two Koreas enter together at the opening ceremony, and assembling a joint women’s hockey team to compete at the games.

The North has displayed signs that it is positively considering both options. North Korea designed its own flag after the 1950-1953 Korean War, while the South continues to use the Taegukgi, which was adopted before the war to represent Korea.

Korea flag-bearers carry a unification flag, leading their teams into the stadium during the 2006 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Turin, Italy. (AP-Yonhap)

The announcement for Wednesday’s meeting came amid a separate inter-Korean working-level meeting held Monday to hammer out the details of North Korea’s plan to send an art troupe to perform at the Winter Games next month. The meeting was the North’s previous response to Seoul’s proposal Friday.

The meeting kicked off at 10:11 a.m. at Tongilgak, located on the northern side of the border village of Panmunjeom, according to Seoul’s Unification Ministry.

The South and North discussed technical issues regarding the time, place and staging of the North Korean art troupe’s performance at the PyeongChang Olympics, said the ministry.

North Korea’s four-member delegation was headed by Kwon Hyok-bong, former head of the North’s Unhasu Orchestra and current director of the performing arts bureau at the Culture Ministry. Its delegation also included Hyon Song-wol, the leader of the all-female Moranbong Band.

The Moranbong Band was launched in July 2012 by the North’s leader Kim Jong-un.

The South Korean delegation was led by Lee Woo-sung, head of the culture and arts policy office at the Culture Ministry, while other members included Korean Symphony Orchestra CEO Lee Won-choul, its artistic director Chong Chi-yong and Han Jong-wook, who heads an inter-Korean dialogue division at the Unification Ministry’s Office of Inter-Korean Dialogue.

“We believe that a great symphony will be enthusiastically received. In that sense, we hope that the talks could go smoothly so as to help our art troupe perform well in the South,” Kwon Hyok-bong, the North’s chief delegate, said at the start of the meeting.

Meanwhile, North Korea voiced criticism against the US, saying it is “throwing cold water” on a thaw in inter-Korean ties with its reiterated vows to continue maximum sanctions and pressure in bringing about the reclusive nation’s denuclearization.

It also hinted it could retract its decision to come to participate in the Olympics, saying that “the train and bus carrying (North Korean) delegation to the Olympics are still in Pyongyang.”

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump told a group of reporters Sunday that the US is “going to see what happens with North Korea,” and that there are “great talks going on,” while alluding to the ongoing inter-Korean talks on the Winter Games.

By Min-kyung Jung

(Korea Herald)