South, North Koreas to open joint liaison office

Ahead of the inter-Korean summit next week from September 18 to 20, the envoy said leaders of both countries will discuss range of issues including development of inter-Korean relations and 'denuclearisation'.

He said South Korean National Security Director Chung Eui-yong had visited Pyongyang earlier this month during which both countries had agreed to hold an inter-Korean summit.

"South and North Korea will open a joint liaison office tomorrow," he told reporters, adding that it is aimed at continuing necessary cooperation between the two countries.

The office will be located at Kaesong city in North Korea. The opening of the office is being seen as a significant move in thawing relations between the two countries.

He said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has confirmed his determination towards complete denuclearisation.

Stating that North Korea needs development, Shin said the country cannot sustain on nuclear weapons alone. He added that the North Korean leadership was well aware of this.

After his meeting with Trump in Singapore in June this year, Kim Jong-un had agreed to work towards "complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula" in return of security guarantee from the United States of America.

President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea and Kim Jong Un Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea had held an intern-Korean Summit meeting at the 'Peace House' at Panmunjeom on April 27 this year.

The two leaders had solemnly declared that there would be no war on the Korean Peninsula and thus a new era of peace had begun.