South Korean President Moon Jae-in will send special envoys to China to discuss issues concerning the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), a senior presidential press secretary said on Thursday.
Yoon Young-chan told a press conference on Thursday that President Moon would dispatch separate delegations to discuss THAAD and the DPRK's nuclear program with their Chinese counterparts, although the two issues will be dealt with together.
File photo of US THAAD system/VCG Photo
Yoon said the dispatches were mentioned during the first telephone conversation between Moon and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which lasted for 40 minutes on Thursday.
Xi congratulated Moon on his election win and the two leaders agreed to exchange special envoys as soon as possible, according to Yoon.
During the phone conversation, the two leaders discussed a broad range of bilateral issues, including the Korean Peninsula and the DPRK's nuclear program, Yoon said.
Xi and Moon agreed to meet face-to-face at the earliest possible date, while re-affirming their common goal of achieving denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.
File photo of the DPRK firing four ballistic missiles on February 27, 2014/VCG Photo
During their phone conversation, Moon advocated a two-track approach of pressure and sanctions toward the DPRK to resolve the country's nuclear issue in a comprehensive, staged way.
Moon said the ultimate goal of sanctions was to bring the DPRK to the dialogue table, to abolish its nuclear program.
On Wednesday night, Moon held his first phone conversation with US President Donald Trump and talked about the Peninsula situation. Trump officially invited Moon to the United States.
(Source: Xinhua)
