ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Sunday welcomed the historic summit between President Moon Jae of South Korea and Chairman Kim Jong Un of North Korea at Panmunjom which could lead to permanent peace.
Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae agreed that they would pursue talks with the US and China to formally end the Korean war, which ended in 1953 with a truce, not total peace.
After the talks between the Korean leaders, US President Donald Trump said talks with North Korea could take place “over the next three or four weeks,” adding: “It's going to be a very important meeting, the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.”
In a statement, the foreign office said Pakistan hoped the step will lead to lasting peace, prosperity, stability, reconciliation and cooperation between the two Koreas as well as in the region.
It said Pakistan had always encouraged South Korea and North Korea to resume meaningful negotiations and supported all efforts for smooth reunification of the Korean Peninsula, including the two summits between North and South Korea in June 2000 and 2007.
The statement said it has been Pakistan’s consistent position that all relevant parties should pursue the path of dialogue and diplomacy to reduce tensions, refrain from any action that is inimical to peace and stability in the region, and work towards achieving a comprehensive solution to the Korean Peninsula issue.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier said he had a ‘good conversation’ with North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang recently.
Kim Jong-un and the South Korean President Moon Jae agreed to work to rid the peninsula of nuclear weapons. The inter-Korean summit at the border came just months after war-like rhetoric from the North.
Kim Jong-un became the first North Korean leader to set foot in South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
The commitment to denuclearisation does not explicitly refer to North Korea halting its nuclear activities but rather to the aim of ‘a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.’
Pakistan has been calling upon North Korea to refrain from any step that undermines the prospects of regional peace and stability.
Pakistan has consistently supported a nuclear weapons-free Korean Peninsula, as agreed by all parties.
“Pakistan calls upon the DPRK to refrain from actions which run counter to the objective of reaching a peaceful and diplomatic solution to the issue within the framework of the Six Party Talks,” a recent statement by the foreign ministry said.