By Sohn JiAe

Chief of the National Security Office Chung Eui-yong briefed the press on his latest meeting with U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton on April 12, saying that, “We shared our information on preparations for the upcoming 2018 Inter-Korean Summit, and we also had an in-depth discussion on how to make the April summit and then the following talks between the U.S. and North Korea a success.”

In the briefing, held at Cheong Wa Dae on April 18, Chung said that, “The security advisor made it clear that he would play his own role in helping U.S. President Donald Trump achieve his goal of establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

The two sides also exchanged thoughts about the possibility of a South Korea-U.S. summit and, also, a trilateral summit among Seoul, Pyeongyang and Washington in the near future, Chung said.

“However, we cannot always be optimistic about the success of the inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea summits. Nonetheless, we will keep doing our best to make the summits successful,” he added.

Mentioning President Trump’s latest assent for the two Koreas to have discussions to formally end their military conflict, Chung said, “The U.S.’ role, especially President Trump’s strong willingness to achieve denuclearization on the peninsula, has led us to where we are now. President Moon Jae-in’s consistent willingness to establish permanent peace on the peninsula by means of dialogue has also contributed.”

jiae5853@korea.kr