Asia

US, S Korea Defense Chiefs Reaffirm Diplomatic Solution of DPRK Denuclearization

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Defense Secretary James Mattis and South Korean Minister of National Defense Song Young-moo reaffirmed in phone talks on Saturday their commitment to a diplomatic solution ensuring the complete denuclearization of North Korea, the Pentagon said.
Sputnik

"Both Secretary Mattis and Minister Song expressed serious commitment to a diplomatic resolution that achieves complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea, as reflected in multiple United Nations Security Council Resolutions," Pentagon's Chief Spokesperson Dana White said in a statement.

The US top Defense official has reaffirmed the "ironclad US commitment" to defend the Republic of Korea "using the full spectrum of US capabilities", the spokesperson stated.

The statement was made in wake of the historical one-day summit, which took place on April 27 in the truce village of Panmunjeom and resulted in the breakthrough in inter-Korean relations: a declaration on the normalization of relations and launch of negotiations in numerous spheres.

READ MORE: North and South Korea Historic Meeting: The Politics Behind the Summit

The meeting followed a thaw in relations started ahead of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, in which North Korea agreed to participate in the games and join its southern neighbor as a unified Korea.

READ MORE: North, South Korean Leaders Talked Tete-a-Tete During Walk in Panmunjom

The meeting between Kim and Moon comes ahead of another anticipated meeting set to take place between US President Donald Trump and Kim later in May.

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