President Moon Jae-in met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the main building of Cheong Wa Dae from 9:00 this morning.  The Secretary of State came to Korea to brief the President about the outcome of the June 12 North Korea-U.S. summit held in Singapore and discuss follow-up measures and ways to work together to implement what was agreed upon.

Welcoming Secretary of State Pompeo on his first visit to Korea, President Moon offered his congratulations on the adoption of a joint statement by the leaders of the United States and North Korea.

President Moon said of the North Korea-U.S. summit: “There are various opinions about the achievements of the summit, but what is more important than anything else is that it has enabled Americans, Japanese, Koreans and other people around the world to break away from the threats of war, nuclear weapons and long-range missiles. The summit was of tremendous value even only with this factor. I believe it was truly a historic feat for the Korean Peninsula and the rest of the world to depart from the age of war and hostility to move toward an era of peace and common prosperity.”

President Moon said that President Trump had given him a call from Air Force One on his way back home after the summit to explain the outcome of the summit in detail. The President added he was delighted that Secretary Pompeo personally visited Korea for a more detailed explanation and discussion in spite of being so tired.

In reply, Secretary Pompeo said that it was only appropriate for him to come to South Korea first after the North Korea-U.S. summit, noting that he was delighted to do so. The Secretary then expressed his appreciation to President Moon. Saying that the success of the summit was attributable to many people, however, he continued that President Moon had successfully held the inter-Korean summit and that without such endeavors by the President, the foundation could not have been laid to hold the North Korea-U.S. summit in a successful manner.

Secretary of State Pompeo went on that he believed that there was a lot to be done going forward but he was confident that the two sides would be able to fully cooperate and bring ultimate peace to the Korean Peninsula together.  

In addition, the Secretary of State said he was certain that they had taken an important step forward through the summit in Singapore and that the peoples of the two countries would ultimately be able to bring about a better result by working together. He went on to say that he believed that the two sides were fully committed in this area. 

Attendees from the American side at the meeting today included Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, Commander of United States Forces Korea; Peter Michael McKinley, U.S. Ambassador to Brazil; Marc Knapper, Chargé d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul; and Alex Wong, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian & Pacific Affairs. Those from the Korean side included Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha; Director of National Security Chung Eui-yong; Chief of National Intelligence Service Suh Hoon; Second Deputy Director of National Security Nam Gwan-pyo; and Senior Secretary to the President for Public Communication Yoon Young-chan.