President Moon: "North Korea's Nuclear and Missile Threats Can Be Adequately Defended"

"North Korea Denuclearization Must Restart from the Singapore Declaration"

On the 18th, citizens are watching the live broadcast of President Moon Jae-in's New Year's press conference in the Seoul Station waiting room. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

President Moon Jae-in said on the 18th that regarding the prolonged deadlock in the Korean Peninsula peace process, "If we restart from the Singapore Declaration and engage in dialogue and negotiations to find concrete measures, I believe we can proceed with North Korea-U.S. talks and inter-Korean talks more swiftly."

At the New Year's press conference held at the Blue House Chuncheon Hall that day, President Moon said, "With the inauguration of the new U.S. administration under Joe Biden, I believe a turning point has been created to newly start North Korea-U.S. talks and inter-Korean talks," expressing this view.

Although Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of North Korea, clearly stated the policy of strengthening nuclear forces at the 8th Party Congress, President Moon said that denuclearization negotiations can be advanced and a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula can be established through dialogue and negotiations.

President Moon said, "I think the parts about North Korea enhancing its nuclear capabilities or strengthening various weapons systems come from the situation where denuclearization and peace-building talks have not yet been concluded," adding, "If dialogue for denuclearization and the establishment of a peace regime proceeds successfully, I believe these issues can be resolved together."

At the same time, President Moon expressed confidence in preparing for North Korea's military buildup. He emphasized, "(Regarding North Korea's) enhancement of weapons systems, South Korea-U.S. intelligence authorities are always conducting thorough analysis," and added, "South Korea has sufficient systems to defend against (North Korea's) nuclear weapons and missiles. If there are any deficiencies, we will undoubtedly supplement them."