Tokyo Hopes Inter-Korean Summit To Lead To Denuclearization - Chief Cabinet Secretary

The Japanese government hopes that the statement that Seoul and Pyongyang issued earlier on Wednesday after their summit, which stipulates that Pyongyang should disassemble its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon, will contribute to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday.

TOKYO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th September, 2018) The Japanese government hopes that the statement that Seoul and Pyongyang issued earlier on Wednesday after their summit, which stipulates that Pyongyang should disassemble its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon, will contribute to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday.

"We hope that this will lead to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," Suga said at a press conference.

When reporters asked Suga whether the need to hold a North Korea-Japan meeting had been discussed during the inter-Korean summit, he said that Tokyo was "receiving different information on this issue from the Korean side."

The summit, held in Pyongyang on Wednesday, became the third meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un so far this year. According to the joint statement, which published the results of the meeting, Pyongyang has promised to close its missile test range in Tongchang-ri and completely disassemble its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon, while Seoul and Pyongyang have agreed to start working to connect their roads and railways before the end of the year.

The North and South Korean defense ministers signed a military agreement following the summit. Under this accord, the two Koreas pledged to create a joint military commission to enhance mutual trust, and establish in the border regions of the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan a zone where military drills would not be held.

As ties between Seoul and Pyongyang improve, so does the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Apart from being in close contact with his South Korean counterpart, Kim also agreed with US President Trump in June that Pyongyang would promote the complete denuclearization of the peninsula in exchange for the United States and South Korean freezing their joint military drills, as well as sanctions relief.