Chinese President Xi Jinping calls for US and North Korean leaders to hold third nuclear summit
- Xi briefs South Korean president on landmark meeting last week with Kim Jong-un
- Kim still committed to goal of denuclearising the Korean peninsula, Xi says
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on the leaders of the United States and North Korea to have a third summit, and show flexibility in resolving the Korean peninsula nuclear issues, following his unprecedented state visit to Pyongyang last week.
In talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Osaka, Japan, ahead of the Group of 20 summit, Xi said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s determination to denuclearise remained solid, and Beijing was still committed to political engagement over the future of the peninsula.
The meeting with Moon came about a week after Xi made his first official visit to Pyongyang, where he pledged to support North Korea in its security and development needs.
“The trend for resolving the Korean peninsula situation through dialogue has not changed,” Xi was quoted by state-run China Central Television as saying on Thursday.
“We should extend our efforts to promote dialogue and work together. China supports the leaders of North Korea and the US to have a new round of dialogue. We hope both sides will show flexibility and push for progress for dialogue.”
Ko Min-jung, spokeswoman for the South Korean Presidential Office, said that during the meeting Xi told Moon that Kim was committed to giving up North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme.