Oct. 15 (UPI) — The Russian government indicated support for a formal declaration ending the Korean War during talks in Moscow, a South Korean diplomat said.
Noh Kyu-duk, South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy, met with Igor Morgulov, Russia’s deputy minister of foreign affairs Thursday to discuss peace on the Korean peninsula.
Noh told reporters that the Russian government views a formal end to the war as a “trust-building measure.”
Morgulov “reaffirmed the Russian government’s commitment to play a constructive role for progress in the Korean Peninsula peace process,” Noh said.
He said South Korea is also stepping up talks with the United States and China to assist with the peace process.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in called for the formal declaration during his U.N. General Assembly speech Sept. 21.
“I once again urge the community of nations to mobilize its strengths for the end-of-war declaration on the Korean Peninsula,” he said.
“I propose that three parties of the two Koreas and the U.S., or four parties of the two Koreas, the U.S. and China come together and declare that the war on the Korean Peninsula is over.”
The United States and South Korea are still technically at war with North Korea even though fighting largely ended in the 1950s.
Seoul has been seeking ways to restart peace talks with North Korea and bring about denuclearization on the peninsula.
“Noh stressed the need to stably manage the situation [on the Korean Peninsula] and the importance of an early resumption of dialogue [with the North],” the South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement regarding Thursday’s meeting with Russia.
