Chinese, Japanese and South Korean leaders agreed on Tuesday to work more closely together towards the goal of peaceful denuclearisation in North Korea.
South Korean President Moon Jae In, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met at a summit in Chengdu in central China.
“The three nations will continue to work together to resolve the problem politically,’’ Li said at a news conference in the Sichuan provincial capital.
Moon echoed Li by stating that peace between the two Koreas is “in the interest of the three nations,’’ the Yonhap news agency reported.
Concerns over North Korea have intensified since Pyongyang imposed a year-end deadline for the U.S. to offer sanctions relief, promising an ominous “Christmas present”, if their demand is not met.
The U.S. special envoy for North Korea has dismissed the deadline.
And in spite of the sanctions threat from Pyongyang, Abe noted it was important to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea and “keep the momentum” in talks between Pyongyang and Washington.
Abe condemned Pyongyang’s recent missile tests, calling them a “serious threat” to regional security, Kyodo News reported.
The three leaders also pledged to promote multilateral free trade in the region and adopted a joint statement on cooperation in the coming decade. (dpa/NAN)
