• News
  • Sport
  • TV
  • Radio
  • Education
  • TV Licences
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • SCI-TECH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION
Home World

North Korea says hope is alive for peace, summit with South

26 September 2021, 10:07 AM  |
Reuters Reuters |  @SABCNews
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in attends the first joint repatriation ceremony for Korean War remains at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam near Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. September 22, 2021.

South Korea's President Moon Jae-in attends the first joint repatriation ceremony for Korean War remains at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam near Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. September 22, 2021.

Image: Reuters

South Korea's President Moon Jae-in attends the first joint repatriation ceremony for Korean War remains at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam near Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. September 22, 2021.

North Korea is willing to consider another summit with South Korea if mutual respect between the neighbours can be assured, state news agency KCNA said on Saturday, citing Kim Yo Jong, the sister of the North leader Kim Jong Un.

South Korea welcomed the prospect on Sunday, with the Unification Ministry saying it expected to swiftly engage in talks with Pyongyang while urging the need to restore a hotline link between the two.

Kim’s comment came after the North urged the United States (US) and South Korea last week to abandon what it called their hostile policy and double standards towards it if formal talks are to be held on ending the 1950-53 Korean War.

North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons has complicated the question of a formal end to the war, which halted with an armistice, rather than a peace treaty, leaving US-led United Nations (UN) forces technically still at war with the North.

“I think that only when impartiality and the attitude of respecting each other are maintained, can there be a smooth understanding between the north and the south,” said Kim Yo Jong, who is a powerful confidante of her brother.

Constructive discussions offer a chance for solutions on issues such as “the re-establishment of the north-south joint liaison office and the north-south summit, to say nothing of the timely declaration of the significant termination of the war”, Kim said.

Speaking on Tuesday to the UN General Assembly, SouthKorean President Moon Jae-in had repeated a call for a formal end to the war but later said time was running out for such progress before his term ends in May.

North Korea has sought an end to the war for decades, but the United States has been reluctant to agree unless it gives up nuclear weapons.

In Saturday’s remarks, Kim said she noted with interest the intense discussion in the South over the renewed prospect of a formal declaration.

“I felt that the atmosphere of the South Korean public desiring to recover the inter-Korean relations from a deadlock and achieve peaceful stability as soon as possible is irresistibly strong,” she said. “We, too, have the same desire.”

On Sunday, responding to the remarks, Seoul’s unification ministry said in a statement: “For these discussions, the inter-Korean communication line must first be restored swiftly, as smooth and stable communication is important.”

The hotline, maintained by South Korea’s military to handle relations with Pyongyang, has not operated since August, as North Korea stopped answering calls.

Talks with the United States have been stalled since 2019, when expectations had grown for a declaration on ending the war, even if not an actual treaty, ahead of a historic summit of former US President Donald Trump and Kim Jung Un in Singapore. But that possibility, and the momentum the leaders generated over three meetings, came to nothing.

In his own UN speech, US President Joe Biden said he wanted “sustained diplomacy” to resolve the crisis over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes.

North Korea has rejected US overtures on dialogue and the head of the UN atomic watchdog said this week its nuclear programme was going “full steam ahead”.

Share article
Tags: South KoreaNorth Korea
Previous Post

Ramaphosa to lead ANC election campaign in Tembisa on Sunday

Next Post

Australia’s Prime Minister refuses to commit to phasing out fossil fuels

Related Posts

Calls for police reform ring out across United States in aftermath of Tyre Nichols’ death

31 January 2023, 10:08 PM
People and rescue workers gather amid the damages, after a suicide blast in a mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan January 30, 2023.

Families search for loved ones after Pakistan mosque blast kills 100

31 January 2023, 3:40 PM
People and rescue workers gather amid the damages, after a suicide blast in a mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan January 30, 2023.

Pakistan mosque bombing death toll rises to 87

31 January 2023, 9:46 AM
US Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon from the 140th Wing of the Colorado Air National Guard during NATO exercise Saber Strike flies over Amari military air base, Estonia June 12, 2018.

Western allies differ over jets for Ukraine as Russia claims gains

31 January 2023, 6:59 AM
A member of the bomb disposal unit surveys the site after a motorcycle bomb blast near a police station in Quetta, Pakistan July 30, 2019.

Suicide bombing at mosque in Pakistan kills 32, targeted police

30 January 2023, 3:16 PM
Ukrainian servicemen remove a grad rocket in a damaged house after an attack, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine January 29, 2023. REUTERSUkrainian servicemen remove a grad rocket in a damaged house after an attack, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine January 29, 2023.

Ukraine calls for faster weapons supplies

30 January 2023, 8:07 AM
Next Post
Birds and a plane are seen flying above emission from the chimneys of a chemical plant located near Port Botany in Sydney, Australia June 2, 2017.

Australia's Prime Minister refuses to commit to phasing out fossil fuels

Most Viewed

  • 24hrs
  • Week
  • Month
  • Gas leak shut, isolated in Pretoria North
  • King of Bacardi music ‘Vusi Ma R5’ killed in Soshanguve
  • Bapedi kingdom commemorates Kgosi Mampuru II, still hoping to find his remains
  • Limpopo man arrested after discovery of his wife’s body in water-filled pit toilet
  • EFF cuts ties with IFP in KwaZulu-Natal
  • Parts of the Northern Cape to be exempted from rolling blackouts
  • VIDEO | St Benedict College’s Matric learner gets 11 distinctions
  • Limpopo matriculant from child-headed household attains diploma pass
  • Female circumcision practice thriving in Eastern Cape
  • Premier denies claims that KZN government spent millions on Mampintsha’s funeral
  • Legitimacy of shooting video in Malema trial under spotlight
  • Energy crisis could be declared a national disaster
  • Eskom implements Stage 5 and 6 rolling blackouts
  • ANC implores BRICS countries for help amid rolling blackouts
  • Registration at Unisa closes on Friday, but management says no need to panic

LATEST

  • World

Calls for police reform ring out across United States in aftermath of Tyre Nichols’ death


African National Congress president Cyril Ramaphosa
  • Business

ANC’s proposal for national state of disaster amid energy crisis elicits mixed reactions


A NSFAS employee assists a student.
  • South Africa

900 000 students to receive NSFAS bursaries in 2023: Nzimande


Small toy figures are seen in front of WeChat logo in this illustration picture taken March 15, 2021.
  • Business

China leads the world in counterfeit, pirated products: US report


A soccer player on the field.
  • Sport
  • Soccer

Orlando Pirates sign Makhehleni Makhaula on last day of transfer window


Close up picture of Cape Town High Court Judge President Hlophe
  • South Africa

Hlophe misses Supreme Court’s extended January deadline


Weather

  • About the SABC
  • Contact Us
  • Jobs
  • Advertise
  • Disclaimer
  • Site Map

SABC © 2023

No Result
View All Result
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • SCI-TECH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION

© 2022

Previous Ramaphosa to lead ANC election campaign in Tembisa on Sunday
Next Australia’s Prime Minister refuses to commit to phasing out fossil fuels