South Korean President Moon Jae-in urged
neighbouring North Korea to engage in dialogue and show "its
commitment to completely dismantling its nuclear weapons" in a speech
Friday at the Swedish parliament.
"Dialogues with the outside world, whether they may be bilateral or
multilateral, must go on until North Korea earns the trust of the
international community," Moon said.
Moon said that sanctions against North Korea would be lifted in
return for "sincere efforts." He pledged that peaceful dialogue would
also mean that "no one would threaten the political system or safety
of North Korea."
Taking questions after his speech, Moon told a Swedish lawmaker that
the two Korean states would also work to reduce conventional weapons
once the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula was achieved.
Informal contacts continue "beneath the surface" between North Korea
and South Korea, as well as between the US and North Korea, he said.
Moon earlier this week said he hoped to meet North Korean leader Kim
Jong Un before welcoming US President Donald Trump to Seoul at the
end of June.
Sweden is celebrating 60 years of diplomatic ties with South Korea
this year. It has also had an embassy in North Korea since the early
1970s and represents US diplomatic interests in Pyongyang.
The
Scandinavian nation has also contributed observers to the
demilitarized zone that separates the two Koreas.
Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf, Prime Minister Stefan Lofven and
Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom attended the speech.
Moon earlier
rode with the king to the Royal Palace in Stockholm in an open
horse-drawn carriage for a formal welcoming ceremony.
Sweden is the final stop on Moon's week-long tour of the Nordic
region that included visits in Finland and Norway.
![South Korea's President Moon Jae-in gives a speech at the Sweden-Korea Business Summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Reuters South Korea's President Moon Jae-in gives a speech at the Sweden-Korea Business Summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Reuters](https://www.gulf-times.com/uploads/imported_images/Upload/Slider/620191419438648095037.jpg)
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in gives a speech at the Sweden-Korea Business Summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Reuters