President Moon Jae-in held a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo for 45 minutes from 3:10 this afternoon. They reached an agreement that they must not miss out on the opportunity of settling peace on the Korean Peninsula, which was created by the recent inter-Korean summit and the upcoming summit between North Korea and the United States. They also agreed to reinforce strategic communication between Korea and China.

The two leaders concurred that, instead of unilaterally demanding North Korea take action, the international community, including the United States, should actively participate in guaranteeing the safety of the North Korean regime, the support of its economic development and the promise of a bright future if the North implemented complete denuclearization.

Among other things, the two leaders shared a common understanding that construction of a railway connecting Seoul in South Korea, Shineuiju in North Korea and a city in China could be studied as a way to assist the North's economic development and that a joint feasibility study between Korea and China should be conducted first. 

President Moon expressed his appreciation to China for having notified Korea in advance of the visit to Dalian, China by Chairman of the State Affairs Commission Kim Jong Un. Mentioning the upcoming summit between North Korea and the United States for denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and establishing a peace regime, President Moon said it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance and that best efforts had to be made to ensure its success. 

Premier Li said the North had clear intentions for complete denuclearization, adding that he believed it was doing what it was supposed to do. The Premier continued that the North was waiting for the United States' corresponding feedback.  

On the fine dust issue, President Moon said it would be essential for the two Governments to demonstrate that they are sincerely concerned about the issue and are working together to address it, considering that fine dust was one of the problems in which the peoples of the two countries were most interested and that it was directly related to public health.

The President also expressed his gratitude to Premier Li, saying issues he raised during the Korea-China summit last year were being solved one by one, including the lifting of restrictions on package trips by Chinese travelers to Korea, the issue of subsidies for electric cars equipped with Korean batteries, the sale of Lotte Mart stores in China and the resumption of the Lotte World project in Shenyang without delay. Then, he said that he looked forward to faster, more vibrant progress in that regard. 

Premier Li said the problem of fine dust was very complicated and its causes had yet to be accurately determined, expressing the hope that the two countries would be able to study and tackle the issue in a substantive manner. President Moon made a request that President Xi Jinping or Premier Li visit Korea this year.