North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Seoul “soon”, the South’s President Moon Jae-in said Thursday, amid a rapid diplomatic thaw on the peninsula despite stalled nuclear talks between Pyongyang and Washington.
At their third summit in Pyongyang in September, the leaders of the two Koreas agreed Kim would visit Seoul “in the near future” without giving a specific date.
Moon later suggested that the trip was likely to happen this year, and told lawmakers Thursday that the peninsula was approaching “the historic starting line” for peace.
“It appears that Chairman Kim Jong Un’s trip to Russia and a visit to North Korea by (Chinese) President Xi Jinping will happen soon,” Moon said, adding there was an “open” possibility of a meeting between Kim and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
“Chairman Kim Jong Un’s return visit to Seoul will happen soon,” he added.
No further detail was given.
The remarks came on the day a no-fly zone went into force along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the two Koreas in line with a military agreement they signed at the September summit in Pyongyang. Read more