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Wednesday, March 21, 2018, 14:19
ROK offers DPRK high-level talks on March 29
By Xinhua
Wednesday, March 21, 2018, 14:19 By Xinhua

In this March 1, 2018 photo, President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea (ROK) delivers a speech during a ceremony celebrating the 99th anniversary of the March First Independence Movement against Japanese colonial rule at Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul. Moon is planning a meeting with DPRK leader Kim Jong-un next month. (KIM HONG-JI / POOL / AFP)

SEOUL/PYONGYANG – The Republic of Korea (ROK) Wednesday offered to hold high-level talks with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on March 29 at Tongilgak, a DPRK building in the truce village of Panmunjom.

ROK President Moon Jae-in meanwhile hinted at a possible trilateral summit with the DPRK and the US, according to the presidential Blue House.

Blue House spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said at a press briefing that Seoul has made the dialogue proposal to be held ahead of a summit meeting between ROK President Moon Jae-in and DPRK leader Kim Jong-un, which the two Koreas agreed to hold in late April. Seoul proposed to hold it at Peace House, a ROK building in Panmunjom.

Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon will lead the three-member ROK delegation to the high-level talks. Two other members would be officials from the Blue House and the National Intelligence Service (NIS).

Seoul proposed to Pyongyang discussing basic matters – such as summit schedule, dialogue agenda and delegations from each side – for the April summit during the senior-level dialogue.

A North Korea-US summit would be a historic event in itself following an inter-Korean summit. 

Moon Jae-in, ROK President


The dialogue offer announcement came after a meeting of the presidential committee to prepare for the April inter-Korean summit. ROK President Moon Jae-in presided over the meeting. 

READ MORE: Security advisers from US, ROK, Japan meet on DPRK summits

The Blue House house said President Moon hinted at a possible trilateral summit with the DPRK and the US during Wednesday’s meeting.

The April summit will mark the first time that an inter-Korean summit is held in Panmunjom, and first time in the ROK territory, and also in the first instance that it is going to be held within a year into a ROK president's inauguration, said Moon. 

The ROK leader noted that those points have a significant meaning. 

The DPRK-US summit, which will follow the inter-Korean summit, will have a significance in world history, Moon said noting that it could be dramatic depending on whether the summit between Kim and Trump is held. 

Moon noted that it could lead to a trilateral summit among the ROK, the DPRK and the US based on progress of the situation.

‘SIGN OF CHANGE IN DPRK-US TIES’

The official DPRK media has said "a sign of change" has appeared in the country's relationship with the US. 

In this March 5, 2018 photo, provided by the DPRK government on March 6, DPRK leader Kim Jong-un, front right, shakes hands with ROK's National Security Director Chung Eui-yong after Chung gave Kim the letter from ROK's President Moon Jae-in, in Pyongyang, DPRK. (KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY / KOREA NEWS SERVICE VIA AP)

"Thanks to the proactive measure and peace-loving proposal made by the DPRK, dramatic atmosphere for reconciliation has been created in relations between the north and the south of Korea and there also has been a sign of change in the DPRK-US relations," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Tuesday. 

ALSO READ: US, DPRK representatives 'to meet in Finland unofficially'

"At this time, the dishonest forces in the United States and Japan, and the conservative group in South Korea are peddling groundless stories distorting the truth in a bid to mislead public opinions," the report said. 

The ROK is also referred to as South Korea.

The report denied that Washington's sanctions and pressure strategy have proved effective. 

The KCNA said it is time for all parties to approach everything with prudence, self-control and patience. 

US President Donald Trump and top DPRK leader Kim Jong-un have agreed to hold a one-on-one meeting in the coming months, which will be the first time for a sitting US president to meet the DPRK's top leader.

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