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Moon-Kim Summit begins on Tuesday in Pyongyang

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Moon-Kim Summit begins on Tuesday in Pyongyang

Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea will witness the landmark summit between Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-In on Tuesday and Wednesday when the two leaders will discuss the denuclearization of the Peninsula. This would the first moment of the two leaders’ encounter in North Korean capital and third of its kind in less than five months since the division of the Peninsula.

According to South Korean official news agency Yonhap, Im Jong Seok, Moon’s chief of staff said in press conference on Monday in Seoul that President Moon Jae-in will discuss ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula with North Korean leader.

Read More: Two Korean Leaders to Meet In Pyongyang

Im said that it will mark a rare opportunity to discuss the issue with the North Korean leader himself. He said, “Just until recently, denuclearization had been an agenda item for talks between the North and the United States. Now, denuclearization is a key issue (at the inter-Korean summit).”

He further said, “This issue cannot be discussed at the working level and even if it is discussed (at the working level), no agreement can emerge from such talks.”

Moon will have at least two occasions to discuss ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula with the North Korean leader, Im noted.

His first meeting with Kim will be held on Tuesday which would be followed by an official welcome dinner. The two leaders will hold their second meeting on Wednesday.

The Moon’s chief of staff said that the summit would focus on three important issues, including improvement and development of inter-Korean relations, to mediate and promote North Korea-U.S. talks for denuclearization and reducing military tensions and ending the threat of war.

Read More: US Defence Secretary meets South Korean Defence Minister

Yonhap says that President Moon’s trip to Pyongyang comes amid an apparent deadlock in the U.S.-North Korea denuclearization talks. Washington insists on the need for maximum sanctions and pressure against the North until full denuclearization while Pyongyang is asking for early rewards for the steps it has already taken.

According to Aljazeera, Washington wants to see a concrete timetable and actions for North Korea’s denuclearization before giving any rewards to the country.

On the other hand, North Korea has called for the US to provide a security guarantee through a joint declaration of a formal end to the 1950-52 Korean War which ended in armistice instead of a peace treaty. This caused imposition of some international sanctions on North Korea.

Im seemed to be in fingers-crossed state of mind when he said that it would seen whether the Moon will succeed in convincing Kim to restart his country’s denuclearization process.

“There are many expectations for great progress on the issue at the summit, but (the possibility) is very limited,” he told the press conference.

Read More: North Korea calls US “gangster-like” attitude

South Korean official stressed the importance of “frank discussion” saying, “Whether an agreement on specific ways to progress denuclearization will emerge, and if such an agreement will be put into a document or be announced orally, all these things are still blank to us.”

President Moon will be accompanied with more than 200 officials during the high-stakes trip.

The two leaders held their first two meetings on April 27 and May 26 in the border village of Panmunjom situated in the demilitarized zone on the inter-Korean border.

In late August, US President Donald Trump cancelled Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Pyongyang at the last hour, citing a lack of sufficient progress since June 12 summit with Kim in Singapore.

Read More: West meets the East in historic summit in Singapore

There are reports that parts of the landmark summit will be broadcast live in Seoul, marking the first time in history for any event in North Korea to be broadcast live in South Korea.

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Amid India-Canada diplomatic tensions, Justin Trudeau shares video of his Diwali celebrations

This comes a day after India expressed its concern over the reports of cancelled Diwali celebrations in Canada.

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Amid the ongoing diplomatic tensions between Canada and India over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday shared a video of his Diwali celebration on social media platform X.

Sharing a 44-second video of his Diwali celebrations on social media, the Canadian Prime Minister wrote, “Happy Diwali! So many special moments shared celebrating with the community this week.”

This comes a day after India expressed its concern over the reports of cancelled Diwali celebrations in Canada.

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Saturday, while addressing the media over Canada’s serious allegation against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Nijjar, said it was unfortunate that the prevailing atmosphere in Canada has reached high levels of intolerance and extremism.

In the video, Prime Minister Trudeau showed off some colorful religious threads on his wrists, explaining that he received them during visits to three Hindu temples in Canada recently. He called them symbols of “good luck” and “protection,” adding with a smile, “I’m not taking them off until they fall off”.

Trudeau was also seen interacting warmly with the community, celebrating the festival, and enjoying delicious Indian sweets like jalebis, which he jokingly said he would “save for the team.”

On November 1, Trudeau posted on X, “Happy Diwali! Today, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain families will celebrate the triumph of light over darkness with festivities, candles, diyas, and fireworks. Wishing you all joy and prosperity during this special time.”

Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Jaiswal said India condemns the recent allegations made by the Canadian government against Shah that he was purportedly involved in the killing of Nijjar and called it “absurd and baseless”.

Jaiswal also said that India had summoned the Canadian High Commissioner on Friday to protest in the strongest terms for the references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison.

On Tuesday, Morrison claimed that Shah orchestrated a campaign of violence, intimidation, and intelligence-gathering aimed at Sikh separatists on Canadian soil. He informed members of Canada’s national security committee in Parliament that he had confirmed Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which was the first to report the allegations. However, Morrison did not provide details on how Canada became aware of Shah’s alleged involvement.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

The Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

In a significant development, India and China have completed the disengagement exercise in the Depsang and Demchok friction points at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The troops of both the countries are now verifying the vacation of positions and removal of infrastructure.

Reportedly, the Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks. The two sides will exchange sweets for Diwali tomorrow.

Earlier, Foreign secretary Vikram Misri announced that New Delhi and Beijing reached an agreement to disengage in the remaining friction points at LAC in eastern Ladakh. After the agreement, the two countries began troops disengagement at the two friction points at Demchok and Depsang plains on October 23.

India-China relations worsened because of the Chinese troops’ aggression along the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border, in April 2020. It further deteriorated on June 15, 2020, after 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty thwarting the Chinese offensive in the Galwan Valley. New Delhi had said India’s bilateral relations with China will normalise only after the situation at the LAC returns to what it was before May 2020.

Reports said that the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) have pulled back their forward-deployed troops and equipment from the two flashpoints, and have also dismantled temporary structures that had been built during the four-year-long standoff.

The Indian soldiers will resume their patrolling in areas that had been cut off because of the PLA’s presence. Nonetheless, the disengagement in Depsang and Demchok will not lead to the creation of buffer zones.

Both the countries had disengaged from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A) and Hot Springs (PP-15) areas and created buffer zones. Speaking to a newspaper publication, Lieutenant General Vinod Bhatia (retd), a former director general of military operations said that the disengagement at Depsang and Demchok will facilitate patrolling by both sides in a coordinated manner, and in the agreed upon frequency and strength of the patrolling parties.

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Iran says 2 soldiers killed in Israeli air strikes

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

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The Iranian Army said on Saturday that two of its soldiers were killed in Israeli air strikes that targeted military bases.

Iran stated that its air defenses effectively countered the attack, resulting in the unfortunate deaths of two soldiers and some areas suffering limited damage.

The Israeli military conducted strikes on Iranian military sites after 2 am on Saturday, responding to what they cited as ongoing attacks by Iran and its allies in the region.

Following the strikes, the Israeli military announced they had successfully completed the mission and achieved their objectives.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the precise targeting of military sites in Iran to neutralize immediate threats to Israel.

“I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran’s attacks against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran — thwarting immediate threats to the State of Israel,” the Israel Defence Force posted on X.

Iran’s air defense headquarters acknowledged the hits on bases in Ilam, Khuzestan, and Tehran but asserted that these attacks were effectively repelled, with investigations ongoing to assess damages. Moreover, Iran indicated its readiness to retaliate against any Israeli aggression, stating that Israel would face proportional consequences for its actions.

Iran expressed its intentions to respond to the Israeli attacks on its military bases, condemning the actions as a violation of international law and the UN Charter’s principles on the use of force.

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

Pakistan strongly condemned Israel’s strikes on Iran, attributing the escalation to Israel and urging the UN Security Council to intervene for peace and security.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasised that Iran should refrain from retaliating against Israel, advocating for restraint on all sides to prevent further escalation.

“I am clear that Israel has the right to defend itself against Iranian aggression. I’m equally clear that we must avoid further regional escalation and urge all sides to restrain. Iran should not respond,” the PM said at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

The United States advised Iran to halt its attacks on Israel to cease the ongoing violence and break the cycle of conflict, underlining the importance of de-escalation.

“We urge Iran to cease its attacks on Israel so that this cycle of fighting can end without further escalation,” U.S. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett told reporters.

President Joe Biden was briefed on the Israeli operation throughout its development and execution by his National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan.

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