SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Friday his government plans to discuss with the United States the possibility of restarting…
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Friday his government plans to discuss with the United States the possibility of restarting joint inter-Korean economic projects to induce nuclear disarmament from North Korea.
Moon’s comments during a nationally televised speech came a day after a high-stakes nuclear summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un collapsed over what the Americans saw as excessive North Korean demands for sanctions relief in exchange for limited disarmament steps.
North Korea insisted it had asked only for partial sanctions relief in exchange for shutting down its main nuclear complex. Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho also said Washington had wasted an opportunity that “may not come again” and the North’s position won’t change even if the United States offers to resume talks.
The breakdown is a setback for Moon, whose desire for closer relations between the Koreas hinges on a nuclear breakthrough between the United States and North Korea. While Moon has prioritized stabilizing relations with the North amid the larger nuclear negotiations, his dovish approach has caused disagreements with Washington, which sees economic pressure as its main leverage with Pyongyang.
“I vow to help usher in an era of a peace-driven economy on the Korean Peninsula,” said Moon, who preaches that South Korea should be in the “driver’s seat” in international efforts to deal with the North.
However, if the nuclear negotiations derail, Moon could potentially face a serious dilemma over whether to continue to engage with the North or join another U. S.-led pressure campaign against it.
In a speech in Seoul commemorating the anniversary of a 1919 Korean uprising against Japanese colonial rule, Moon made a nationalistic call for inter-Korean cooperation, which he says would drive progress in negotiations between the United States and North Korea.
