31 August 2017

News Story: Moon, Abe agree to increase pressure on N. Korea to 'extreme' level

SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed Wednesday to further increase pressure on North Korea to an "extreme" level, also vowing to push for new and stronger sanctions by the U.N. Security Council.

The agreement came in a telephone conversation, one day after the communist North fired an intermediate range ballistic missile that flew over Japan.

"In their telephone conversation, the two leaders highly evaluated their countries' close cooperation in dealing with the crisis. They agreed on the need to increase the pressure on North Korea to an extreme level to make North Korea voluntarily come out to the dialogue table," Park Soo-hyun, spokesman for South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, said in a press briefing.

The South Korean president said launching a ballistic missile over the Japanese territory was "outrageous violence," again denouncing the North's latest missile test that marked the 14th of its kind since the beginning of the year.

The leaders welcomed the UNSC's statement, condemning the reclusive North for its latest missile provocation, calling it an "unprecedentedly swift action" by the UNSC.

They agreed to further work together for fresh UNSC sanctions, according to Park.

Read the full story at YonhapNews