Moon Jae-in, Kim Jong-un hold first round of talks in Pyongyang

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (R) and South Korean President Moon Jae-in (L) wave to Pyongyang citizens from an open-topped vehicle as they drive through Pyongyang on September 18, 2018/AFP

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held their first round of talks here on Tuesday in a historic summit largely aimed at restarting a Washington-Pyongyang dialogue on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Moon arrived in Pyongyang earlier on Tuesday for a three-day visit, becoming the third South Korean leader in history to have visited the North Korean capital, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The third Moon-Kim meeting was held at the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. This is also the first time the North Korean leader has hosted any foreign leader at the headquarters. The two leaders first met in the border village of Panmunjom on April 27 and then again on May 26. Also on the agenda is the further reduction of military tension between the divided Koreas and improvement in their bilateral relations, which Moon says will help promote and even accelerate the North's denuclearization process.

Moon and Kim will meet again on Wednesday for a second round of talks. Depending on the outcome of their talks, the two leaders may hold a joint press conference in Pyongyang to announce the outcome of their summit. Before his departure, Moon told the media that his goal was to break a deadlock in the denuclearization talks between the US and North Korea. "(My) North Korea trip would have a great meaning if it could lead to the resumption of North Korea-US dialogue," Moon said.

The talks have stalled after US President Donald Trump called off a scheduled trip to North Korea by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, citing what he called a lack of progress in the North's denuclearization process.

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