September 18, 2017 09:15
President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump on Sunday agreed to impose stronger sanctions on North Korea.
In a telephone conversation, the two leaders "agreed to strengthen cooperation and exert stronger and practical sanctions so that the regime realizes provocative action leads to further diplomatic isolation and economic pressure," Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Park Soo-hyun told reporters.
Moon and Trump discussed responses to the North's latest nuclear test and the launch of a Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile on Friday.
Their conversation lasted 25 minutes, and the transcript was reviewed by both sides before being released to the public.
Seoul and Washington put aside thorny issues like Moon's plan to give US$8 million in humanitarian aid through international organizations for North Korean mothers and children.
The two leaders "committed to continuing to take steps to strengthen deterrence and defense capabilities and to maximize economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea," Park said.
Moon also thanked Trump for his cooperation in lifting the limits on South Korean missile capabilities and agreeing to deploy more state-of-the-art weapons here.
Moon leaves for New York on Monday to attend the UN General Assembly. He will speak at a session on Thursday and meet Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines.
- Copyright © Chosunilbo & Chosun.com