international
Two Koreas discuss reducing military tension amid reports of North Korea missile activity
[su_label type=”info”]SMA News – Agencies [/su_label][su_spacer size=”10″] North and South Korea discussed reducing tension but didn’t announce any detailed agreements after military talks on Tuesday, while the United States detected renewed activity at a North Korean missile factory, casting more suspicion over the North’s intentions.
The meeting, the second since June and held in the border village of Panmunjom, was designed to follow on from an inter-Korean summit in April at which leaders of the two Koreas agreed to defuse tension and halt “all hostile acts”.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un also vowed during his separate summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Singapore in June to work toward denuclearization, but there has been no concrete agreement to accomplish that goal. The North had pursued its nuclear and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions and increasingly severe sanctions.
Generals from the two Koreas exchanged views on a possible cut in firearms and personnel to “demilitarize” the
heavily fortified demilitarized zone (DMZ), as well as joint excavation within the area of the remains of soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War.
They also discussed ways to turn the skirmish-prone West Sea by ceasing firing exercises and withdrawing artillery along the shore, according to South Korea’s defense ministry.
But they did not agree on details, which will be further discussed through working-level talks, the ministry said.
The ministry said last week it plans to reduce guard posts and equipment along the heavily fortified border as an initial step.
The talks were meaningful in “creating understanding” in ways to implement the summit agreement, said Kim Do-gyun, the South’s chief negotiator who is in charge of North Korea policy at the ministry.
The meeting, the second since June and held in the border village of Panmunjom, was designed to follow on from an inter-Korean summit in April at which leaders of the two Koreas agreed to defuse tension and halt “all hostile acts”.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un also vowed during his separate summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Singapore in June to work toward denuclearization, but there has been no concrete agreement to accomplish that goal. The North had pursued its nuclear and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions and increasingly severe sanctions.
Generals from the two Koreas exchanged views on a possible cut in firearms and personnel to “demilitarize” the
heavily fortified demilitarized zone (DMZ), as well as joint excavation within the area of the remains of soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War.
They also discussed ways to turn the skirmish-prone West Sea by ceasing firing exercises and withdrawing artillery along the shore, according to South Korea’s defense ministry.
But they did not agree on details, which will be further discussed through working-level talks, the ministry said.
The ministry said last week it plans to reduce guard posts and equipment along the heavily fortified border as an initial step.
The talks were meaningful in “creating understanding” in ways to implement the summit agreement, said Kim Do-gyun, the South’s chief negotiator who is in charge of North Korea policy at the ministry.
