WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – Seoul hopes to build upon recent breakthrough bilateral discussions with Pyongyang to resolve the nuclear crisis, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said at a ministerial meeting in Vancouver, Canada on Tuesday.
“As you know, South and North have jump-started talks this year after several years of hiatus. And despite the long absence I have to report that the dialogue has been rather productive and positive,” Kang said. “We hope to build on this initial breakthrough to ease tension in the region and forge favorable conditions for a peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue.”
On Tuesday, Pyongyang and Seoul reached an agreement on the participation of North Korean athletes in the upcoming Olympics in South Korea. The two parties are now to decide on the list of North Korean athletes and officials, who will take part in the Olympics.
The Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Security and Stability on the Korean Peninsula is being held in Vancouver. The two-day session, co-hosted by Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, kicked off on Monday.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during a press briefing on Tuesday that the international community should take advantage of the existing dialogue between North and South Korea as it provides an opportunity to advance the efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.
“I think there are some signals of hope. What I believe is extremely important is to take profit of these signals of hope to make sure that serious process leading to peaceful denuclearization of Korean peninsula takes place,” Guterres told reporters.
The situation on the Korean Peninsula has become tense after the United States and North Korea traded threats and insults following Pyongyang’s nuclear and ballistic missile tests during the past year.
The UN Security Council has introduced multiple sanctions against North Korea in order to impede the development of the country’s nuclear program.
The 2018 Winter Olympic Games will take place in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and two nearby cities, Gangneung and Jeongseon, from February 9 to February 25. The South Korean resort city is located some 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the border with North Korea.
