Editorial: First U.S.-North Korea summit just a step toward denuclearization

June 14 , 2018

The first ever-summit meeting between the president of the United States and leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in Singapore marked a historic step in a new bilateral relationship as well as peace and stability for the region and the world. Yet, the summit, as many have pointed out, has far fallen short of “the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement” (CVID) of nuclear weapons sought by the U.S.

While Komeito welcomes the direct discussions held between U.S. President Donald Trump and DPRK Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un, we recognize that the summit was but one step along the rocky path to a fully denuclearized North Korea.

It remains essential for the U.S. and international community to remain united in keeping sanctions in place while pushing forward dialogue on denuclearization with the end game being CVID.

President Trump’s posing in Singapore of the abduction of Japanese citizens deserves special attention, given that it is a third-party issue. Following the summit, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated his hope of discussing the abduction issue directly with Pyongyang—hopefully laying the groundwork for direct talks in the future between North Korea and Japan.