Cheong "Respect for Panmunjom Declaration Also Included in South Korea-US Joint Statement"

Discussion on Complete Lift of ROK-US Missile Guidelines... ROK-US Also Discuss Cooperation on Nuclear Third-Country Entry

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] It has been reported that the joint statement between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden will include content respecting the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration.

A senior Blue House official said at a dinner meeting held in Washington on the 20th (local time), "Korea has contributed significantly to the U.S. review of its North Korea policy," adding, "The Panmunjom Declaration may be included as a sign of respect and recognition for inter-Korean relations." The official explained, "It means respecting not only the agreements between North Korea and the U.S. but also those between South and North Korea."

The April 27 Panmunjom Declaration is a joint declaration announced by President Moon and North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un at the inter-Korean summit held in Panmunjom on April 27, 2018. It includes contents such as complete denuclearization, improvement of inter-Korean relations, declaration of the end of the war, and holding a South-North-U.S. summit to convert the armistice agreement into a peace agreement.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Moon and President Biden are scheduled to announce a joint statement following the Korea-U.S. summit on the afternoon of the 21st, and according to the Blue House, it will include content respecting the Panmunjom Declaration.

Additionally, the Korea-U.S. leaders are reportedly set to discuss a plan to jointly enter third countries based on nuclear power cooperation.

A senior Blue House official said, "The two leaders are discussing nuclear power cooperation and may announce the results after the summit." The official added, "The intention is to clearly show the public specific examples of Korea-U.S. cooperation," and claimed, "In the case of the nuclear power industry, cooperation between Korea and the U.S. has a high potential to create synergy effects."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

A senior Blue House official explained, "Except for China, there is no country as excellent as Korea in terms of price competitiveness, quality control, and facility management," adding, "Regarding original technology and design technology, Korea is at a considerable level, but the U.S. also possesses outstanding technology."

The official emphasized, "There is demand for nuclear power plant construction in the Middle East and Europe. If Korea and the U.S. join hands and enter these markets, they can have considerable competitiveness," and added, "It is of great significance in that the alliance shares the direction to move toward the future and explicitly states this in this summit."

The Korea-U.S. leaders are also reported to have expanded their mutual understanding regarding the complete lifting of the Korea-U.S. Missile Guidelines (RMG). A senior Blue House official said, "Our diplomatic and security team had the will and plan to resolve the 'missile guidelines lifting' issue somehow before President Moon's term ends," adding, "There is hope that a positive conclusion on this possibility may be announced at tomorrow's (Korea-U.S. summit)."

The official explained, "The Korea-U.S. missile guidelines have been in place for 42 years. At that time, we said we would bring in missiles under U.S. control to acquire missile technology, but it became a shackle instead. Therefore, since the beginning of the Moon Jae-in administration, securing missile sovereignty has been a task we have had to address."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.