Sokor President Moon says Korean crisis must end peacefully

SEOUL, South Korea—South Korean President Moon Jae-in says North Korea could create conditions for dialogue by stopping additional nuclear and missile tests.

Moon, in a speech Tuesday, also said resolving the North Korean threat could begin with freezing its nuclear weapons program.

Tensions have increased as North Korea advanced toward being able to hit the mainland United States with a nuclear-armed missile. Its state media described in detail Tuesday its plans to launch missiles into waters near Guam. But it also reported that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would watch U.S. conduct before giving his orders for the test. That appeared to signal a path to defuse the crisis.

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Moon says that his government shares a view with Washington that the purpose of strong sanctions and pressure against North Korea is to draw Pyongyang to negotiations.

The South Korean president says the North Korean nuclear crisis must “absolutely be solved peacefully” and there can be no U.S. military moves without South Korean consent.

Moon, a liberal who favors engagement with the North, delivered a nationally televised speech Tuesday on the anniversary of the end of World War II and the Korean Peninsula’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule.

North Korea has said its military presented with plans to launch missiles into waters near Guam. But its comments appeared to signal a path to defuse the crisis by saying Kim would watch U.S. conduct before giving his orders.

Moon said his South Korean government “will put everything on the line to prevent another war in the Korean Peninsula.”

He says the “North Korean nuclear program should absolutely be solved peacefully, and the (South Korean) government and the U.S. government don’t have a different position on this.” JPV