The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Tuesday, January 01, 2019 02:21 PM

President Trump Deserves "Big Credit" For Talks Between North, South Korea Says South Korean President Moon Jae

SEOUL, South Korea – President Trump deserves “big credit” for kicking off the first talks between Pyongyang and Seoul in more than two years, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday.

North Korea agreed Tuesday to send a delegation to next month’s Winter Olympics, which are set to begin next month in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The rival nations’ talks are the first sign of a possible thaw in their relationship.

The talks were held for the first time since 2015 and Moon credited Trump for sparking them, according to Reuters.

“I think President Trump deserves big credit for bringing about the inter-Korean talks,” Moon said at a news conference. “It could be a resulting work of the U.S.-led sanctions and pressure.”

Following Moon's comments, his Special Adviser for Foreign Affairs and National Security, Chung-in Moon told Fox News: "I agree 100 percent. Were it not for President Trump's pressures, North Korea would not have come to South Korea. President Trump deserves credit."

He suggested the talks are a prelude to substantive bilateral discussions between the U.S. and North Korea. “North Korea is desperate to have talks with the U.S., but there are communication difficulties. What was the choice? You can go to Washington through South Korea," he said.

As to fears that South Korea will stray from the hard line the Trump Administration has established regarding the nuclear and missile programs of North Korea, the special adviser said that would not happen.

"South Korea will go in tandem with the United States in dealing with North Korea,” he said. “Precisely"

He said the South Korean government reacted to President Trump's support of current negotiation efforts after past criticism of Seoul by Washington.

"We heard what President Trump was saying: ‘We support you.’ Even delaying the joint military drills,” he said. “I think it was an amazing development."

Trump has taken a hard line against Kim Jong Un's belligerent regime, promising "fire and fury" in the face of North Korea's continued testing of illicit ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons. The two leaders have openly talked about using nukes, with both Trump and Kim Jong Un claiming they have buttons on their desks to launch nuclear-tipped missiles.

The U.S. had expressed concerns that North Korea’s willingness to talk with Seoul could drive a wedge in their own relationship with South Korea, but the South Korean president downplayed that notion, saying the main goal was still a denuclearized peninsula.

“The denuclearization of the Korean peninsula the two Koreas agreed upon jointly [in the past] is our basic stance that will never be given up,” Moon said.

North Korea said it would still not discuss its nuclear weapons program with South Korea because its arsenal was only aimed at the U.S.

“North Korea’s weapons are only aimed at the United States, not our brethren, China or Russia,” said Ri Son Gwon, the head of North Korea’s five-member delegation at the talks with South Korea.

Ri added discussing North Korea’s nuclear program will only damage ties with South Korea.

A hat tip from South Korea to Trump could signal another foreign policy win for the administration that started the year with a ton of momentum after defeating the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

The Trump administration authorized a more intensive air strategy, which left the so-called “caliphate” decimated. The terror group lost 98 percent of its territory it once held, U.S. military officials said in December.

U.S. officials said fewer than 1,000 ISIS fighters remain in Iraq and Syria, down from a peak of nearly 45,000 two years ago.

Fox News’ Katherine Lam and Lucas Tomlinson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.