Seoul, Oct 27 (IANS) The South Korea’s unification ministry on Monday reiterated its call for U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to meet on the occasion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering, describing the event as a “good opportunity” for their talks.
As Trump departed over the weekend for an Asia trip that includes a stop in South Korea on October 29-30 for the APEC meetings, Trump called North Korea “sort of a nuclear power” and said he is “open” to meeting with Kim, fueling hopes for their first meeting in more than six years, Yonhap News Agency reported.
“This APEC event is a good opportunity for the leaders of the US and North Korea to meet,” Koo Byoung-sam, spokesperson at the unification ministry, said at a press briefing when asked about the possibility of a Trump-Kim meeting during the APEC period.
Koo renewed the call for a Trump-Kim meeting after Unification Minister Chung Dong-young last week called on the leaders of the two countries not to miss the opportunity to meet on the occasion of the APEC event.
In what could be a potential sign of preparation for a Trump-Kim meeting, North Korea has been seen doing cleaning, pruning, weeding and taking photographs on the northern side of the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom — where Trump last met Kim in 2019 — over the past week.
North Korea was observed cleaning the area over the weekend, Koo said, adding, however, that the activity appeared to be part of routine operations.
Meanwhile, a senior South Korean presidential official said that a meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is “very unlikely” to happen during this APEC gathering.
Third Deputy National Security Adviser Oh Hyun-joo made the remark amid speculation about the possible meeting as Trump is scheduled to arrive in South Korea on Wednesday for the gathering in the southeastern city of Gyeongju.
“There are talks the two could meet, but (I) believe that possibility is very unlikely,” Oh said during a meeting with foreign media in Seoul.
Trump earlier said he was open to meeting Kim during his upcoming visit to South Korea in a press briefing aboard Air Force One on Friday.
–IANS
akl/as
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by BhaskarLive.in and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of BhaskarLive.in We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, BhaskarLive.in takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.