Presidential Spokesperson Kim Eui-kyeom Briefs Media on First Meeting Between South and North Korean Leaders and Official Welcoming Ceremony 

Inter-Korean Summit Press Corps | 2018-04-27 10:07 (KST)

The historic first meeting between President Moon Jae-in and Chairman of the State Affairs Commission Kim Jong Un will take place on the Military Demarcation Line at Panmunjeom at around 9:30 this morning.

When Chairman Kim Jong Un appears from the Panmugak building on the northern side of Panmunjeom, President Moon, who has been waiting in front of Peace House, will walk toward the MDL. The two leaders will shake hands over the MDL.

Chairman Kim will cross the MDL to the South as President Moon guides him. The two leaders will face Panmungak, the main building in the northern part of Panmunjeom, and then, Freedom House, the main building in the southern side, while they stand for commemorative photographs.

When they walk to a road on the southern side of Panmunjeom, two children are scheduled to present bouquets to Chairman Kim. The boy and girl are both in the fifth grade at Daesungdong Elementary School in Daesungdong Village, located inside the DMZ, an area that is off-limits to regular civilians.

The children’s welcoming suggests the desire to open a new era. Greetings from children to foreign leaders are not unprecedented, having taken place many times before, including when U.S. President Donald Trump visited South Korea last year. President Moon and Chairman Kim are expected to pose for a commemorative photo with the two children after the flowers have been presented.

The two leaders will then stand between two lines of the traditional honor guard as they walk to the right side of Freedom House together. The leaders of the two Koreas will walk 130 meters toward the venue of the welcoming ceremony located at the parking area of Freedom House. Heading the group is the Korean traditional music band while the traditional guard and flag bearers will follow behind the two leaders. As the traditional guard stand next to each side of the two leaders, they form a rectangular shape, which is to symbolize the leaders riding a traditional palanquin. While the two leaders walk, the delegates from both the North and South Korean sides will pass through the interior of the Freedom House toward the welcoming venue.

At around 9:40, the two leaders will again walk between two lines of the traditional honor guard lining up on both sides of the passage leading to the reviewing platform. On the platform, the two leaders will be saluted by the honor guard commander. When the commander reports that the inspection is ready, they will descend the stand to begin their review.

Seen from the platform, the military band, the honor guard representing the three branches of the South Korean armed forces, the traditional honor guard and the traditional military band are positioned in order from the left side. The review will proceed from the left, during which traditional Korean tunes are being played. Back in 2000 and 2007 when President Kim Dae-jung and President Roh Moo-hyun visited Pyeongyang for a summit, they also reviewed the honor guard of the North Korea’s army, navy and air force.

The honor guard commander will announce the end of review to President Moon Jae-in standing at a corner-end of the platform. President Moon then will introduce the South Korean official delegation to Chairman of the State Affairs Commission Kim Jong Un. The president will be introduced to North Korea’s official delegates afterward.

Standing in the South Korean side are Presidential Chief of Staff Im Jong-seok, Minister of Unification Cho Myoung Gyon, Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha, Minister of National Defense Song Young-moo, Chief of National Intelligence Service Suh Hoon, Director of National Security Chung Eui-yong, Chairman of the ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Jeong Kyeongdoo, Presidential Security Service Joo Young-hoon, Senior Secretary to the President for Public Communication Yoon Young-chan, and Protocol Secretary to the President Cho Han Ki.

Delegates from North Korea include President of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly Kim Yong Nam, Vice-chairman of the Party Central Committee Kim Yong Chol, Vice Chairman of the Central Committee of Workers’ Party of Korea Choe Hwi, Vice Chairman of the Central Committee of Workers’ Party of Korea Ri Su Yong, 1st Vice Department Director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea Kim Yo Jong, Chief of the KPA General Staff Ri Myong Su, Minister of the People’s Armed Forces of the DPRK Pak Yong Sik, Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, and Chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country Ri Son Gwon.

The two leaders will walk to the first floor of Peace House, where Chairman Kim is scheduled to sign the guestbook. President Moon and Chairman Kim will take commemorative photos with Min Joung-ki’s painting Bukhansan Mountain as a background. The painting has been chosen to convey a symbolic meaning of inviting Kim Jong Un, who will be the first-ever supreme leader of North Korea to step on the South Korean territory, to Seoul’s renowned mountain.