Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - On Thursday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi of the US House of Representatives and her South Korean counterpart pro...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - On Thursday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi of the US House of Representatives and her South Korean counterpart promised to support initiatives aimed at achieving North Korea's denuclearization and maintaining a potent deterrent against it.
Following their meeting in Seoul, Pelosi and Kim Jin-pyo, speaker of the National Assembly of South Korea, released a joint statement in which they voiced their concerns on the North's escalating nuclear and missile threats.
According to the statement, "both parties raised worries about the catastrophic circumstances of North Korea's rising threat."
"We decided to support the two countries' efforts to achieve peace and practical denuclearization through international cooperation and diplomatic discussion, based on the strong and extensive deterrence against the North."
At a news conference, Pelosi added that she and Kim talked about ways to further collaboration on issues of regional security, the economy, and the environment.
After a brief stopover in Taiwan, Pelosi landed in South Korea late on Wednesday. Before meeting with Kim and other MPs in Seoul on Thursday, she met with representatives of the U.S. embassy.
According to a South Korean official, Pelosi will travel to the Joint Security Area later on Thursday, which is patrolled jointly by North Korea and the U.S.-led U.N. Command and is located close to the heavily fortified inter-Korean border.
She would be the highest-ranking American representative to go there since former President Donald Trump met Kim Jong Un there in 2019.
Yoon Suk-yeol, the president of South Korea, will not see Pelosi since he is on vacation this week, but his office said he will call her later on Thursday.
According to South Korean media, Yoon might be avoiding Pelosi's meeting in order to avoid upsetting China since her travel to Taiwan sparked fury in Beijing, which claims the autonomous island as its own.
Yoon's office welcomed Pelosi and wished her a smooth journey, according to a representative, who declined to comment on the reports.
In response to her travel to Taiwan, the official stated, "Our perspective is that we will continue close communications with other nations based on the belief that sustaining regional peace and stability by dialogue and collaboration is crucial."
