ROK says it shares with China strategic goal of Peninsula denuclearization

SEOUL - The Republic of Korea (ROK) shares with China the strategic goal of the Korean Peninsula's complete denuclearization, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

ROK Foreign Ministry spokesperson Noh Kyu-duk told a press briefing that Seoul and Beijing continue to cooperate and share the strategic goal of the peninsula's complete denuclearization and a lasting peace settlement.

He said the two nations have closely communicated and cooperated with each other on issues, including exchanges between the ROK and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and between the DPRK and the United States.

The spokesperson said the government anticipates China's constructive role in resolving issues and referred to DPRK leader Kim Jong-un's visit to China.

Kim arrived in Beijing earlier in the day for a two-day visit. It was his third trip to China in just three months.

The visit comes after he sat down face-to-face with US President Donald Trump in Singapore on June 12, marking the first-ever DPRK-US summit in history.

Kim and Trump agreed on complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in return for security guarantees for the DPRK.

Earlier in the day, the military authorities of the ROK and the United States announced the suspension of all planned activities for the Ulchi Freedom Guardian war games scheduled for August.

The Ulchi Freedom Guardian is a computer-simulated command post exercise, which the DPRK has denounced as a dress rehearsal for northward invasion.