Foreign Ministers of South Korea, the U.S., Japan, China, and Russia as well as ASEAN will participate in diplomatic efforts, including the creation of an environment for peaceful dialogue
사진 확대 ※Capture of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) website.
Foreign ministers of South Korea, the U.S., Japan, China, and Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASESAN) adopted the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) chairman’s statement calling for denuclearization and concerns about North Korea’s nuclear and missile development.
On the 25th, the ARF released the 33rd ARF Chairman’s statement on its website. The ARF held a meeting on the 23rd with North Korea absent for two consecutive years and adopted a chairman’s statement that included the expression “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula (CD)” following last year. This expression corresponds to the grand principle of resolving the North Korean nuclear issue included in the April 27 inter-Korean summit held in Panmunjom in 2018 and the joint declaration of the June 12 U.S.-North Korea summit held in Singapore.
This is a document adopted by a high-level multilateral consultative body that includes foreign ministers of China and Russia, as North Korea has recently insisted on the absolute impossibility of denuclearization in close contact with China and Russia. China and Russia did not discuss denuclearization in bilateral relations with North Korea, but it is believed that they have taken a stance that does not oppose the international community’s call for denuclearization of North Korea.
“The plenary session expressed concern about the recent development of the situation on the Korean Peninsula and emphasized the importance of resuming peaceful dialogue between all relevant parties to realize permanent peace and stability on the denuclearized Korean Peninsula,” the ARF said in a statement. “We expressed serious concern that the continued development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), which violates the UN Security Council resolutions, is a worrisome development that threatens peace and stability in the region,” he said.
“The plenary session called for the full implementation of all relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” the ARF said in a statement. “We noted the international community’s efforts to promote the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner.” He then stressed that “diplomatic efforts, including creating a favorable environment for peaceful dialogue between all parties involved, should be maintained as a top priority.” He also reaffirmed that the ARF is willing to take on a constructive role for this, focusing on denuclearizing and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula through diplomacy and dialogue.
The ARF used the expression “complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID)” in the chairman’s statement for the third consecutive year until 2024 regarding the North Korean nuclear issue. However, since the launch of the Lee Jae Myung government, which emphasizes inter-Korean peace and coexistence in South Korea, the chairman’s statement seems to include the expression of “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” agreed between the South, North and the U.S.