Let's start with President Moon Jae-in's trip to Europe.
He was in Paris on Monday for a summit with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
The South Korean leader urged France and other world powers to start lifting sanctions on North Korea in a bid to encourage the regime to stay committed to denuclearization.
Shin Se-min reports from Paris.
Meeting his French counterpart for the second time since taking office,... President Moon Jae-in pressed the need to loosen international sanctions on North Korea when and if the regime takes practical steps toward giving up its nuclear program.
At their summit in Paris on Monday,... President Moon called on European countries like France to play a role in encouraging the regime to continue on the path to peace.
"North Korea should be assured it will be protected without having to rely on its nuclear weapons. The international community should show faith the North has chosen the right path and encourage the regime to speed up the denuclearization process."
Macron said international sanctions should remain in place until the regime has fully and finally abandoned its nuclear program.
However,... the French leader said France was willing to provide a helping hand if the North backs up its words with action.
"As a nuclear state ourselves, France is ready to contribute on a technical level to help the denuclearization process. We have a range of expertise in the nuclear field which, in terms of denuclearization, would be useful and we can offer that if needed."
Besides North Korea-related diplomacy,... the two leaders discussed a range of other issues.
They agreed to expand bilateral trade and investment between South Korea and France.
They committed to joint efforts on fostering new growth engines in the fourth industrial revolution through cooperation in the fields of science, technology, startups and SMEs.
They also decided to hold their next summit in Seoul after President Moon extended an invitation to Macron.
”A comprehensive upgrade from existing relations in security, economy -- even culture and sports. Behind it all is the building of an unbreakable coalition to complete President Moon’s journey to peace on the divided peninsula.
Shin Se-min, Arirang News, Paris."
