September 22, 2017 10:04
President Moon Jae-in in a speech to the UN General Assembly on Thursday said pressure through sanctions and diplomatic efforts are the only ways to deal with the North Korean nuclear crisis.
After the speech, Moon sat down with U.S. President Donald Trump, whose bellicose tirade at the UN earlier this week has set tongues wagging, and with Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe together.
"All our efforts are to prevent war and maintain peace," Moon told the UN in stark contrast to his U.S. counterpart, and called for "peaceful, diplomatic and political solutions."
"Finding a fundamental way to end this vicious circle of provocations and sanctions is the most important task confronting the UN," he added. "The Korean Peninsula is where the guiding spirit of the UN -- world peace through multiculturalism -- is most desperately needed right now."
Moon also called for North Korean participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang and said it excited him to picture the North's athletes parading at the opening and closing ceremonies and people from around the world cheering for them.
"The steps you take now will become a march for peace," he concluded.
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