UK welcomes N.Korea denuclearization announcement

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) – The U.K. welcomes the announcement that the two Koreas will work towards the denuclearization of North Korea, the British Foreign Office said Friday.

According to a statement, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson hailed the announcement coming after a historic summit between the leaders of the two Koreas.

“I welcome the announcement that the two Koreas will work towards the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearisation of North Korea, improve bilateral ties and reduce border tensions,” Johnson said.

The leaders of North and South Korea agreed on Friday for “complete denuclearization” and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.

The deal followed a historic bilateral summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in the Joint Security Area of Panmunjom in the South.

Pointing out that “there are still many questions to be answered,” Johnson said: “Kim Jong-un’s commitment to halt all nuclear and intercontinental and intermediate range ballistic missiles tests is a positive step.”

“We hope this indicates an intention to negotiate in good faith and that Kim has heeded the clear message to North Korea that only a change of course can bring the security and prosperity it claims to seek,” he said.

"The two leaders solemnly declared [...] that there will be no more war on the Korean Peninsula and a new age of peace has dawned," the Korean leaders said in a joint declaration after the summit, according to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency.

Johnson said the U.K. will continue “with our international partners to strictly enforce existing sanctions until such time that North Korea turns its commitments into concrete steps towards denuclearization.”