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Trump agreed with Kim that there were road bumps on the path to the summit, but that these were overcome
China, which has played a key role in bridging the gap between Pyongyang and Washington and has been praised by the White House for its efforts, on Tuesday praised the achievements of the Singapore summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
The two leaders met at 9am Tuesday in what many described as a historic summit effectively ending a 63-year state of war between North Korea and the US.
The two issued a joint statement which spoke to the establishment of new relations between the two countries and bringing peace to the Korean Peninsula.
“Reaffirming the April 27, 2018 Panmunjom Declaration [between North and South Korea], the DPRK commits to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” the statement said.
“It was not easy getting here,” Kim told reporters, as he outlined the obstacles in the past few weeks which had for a time put the summit in question.
“But we overcame all of them and we are here today,” he added.
“That’s true,” said Trump, before shaking Kim’s hand again and giving him a thumb’s up.
The summit concluded with the signing of a joint document.
“On behalf of Chairman Kim and myself, we are very honored to have signed this document,” said Trump.
“The world will see significant change,” Kim said.
Trump later said that denuclearization in North Korea – a key US demand to even partake in the summit – would begin quickly. The document also mentioned that the US would provide undisclosed security guarantees to North Korea.
The North Koreans have always said that joint South Korean-US military drills, held annually since the late 1950s, were considered belligerent and tantamount to preparing for war.
During his talk with reporters, Trump said the war games expensive and “provocative,” appearing to indicate that he may move to postpone or cancel them if post-summit developments prove fruitful.
Trump indicated there may be another summit in the following months.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin had called Trump “courageous and mature” for meeting with Kim in Singapore. He also lauded the North Korean leadership for taking “unprecedented steps towards easing tensions”.
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
