Moon Jae-in: Kim Jong-un should also respond to Trump's willingness to talk
At a ceremony marking the eighth anniversary of the September 19 Pyongyang Joint Declaration held at the National Assembly on the 18th, former President Moon Jae-in said it was "fortunate that U.S. President Trump has shown his willingness to create opportunities for dialogue by scaling down the U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises," and urged North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un to respond in kind and come to the negotiating table. Moon emphasized that if Washington and Pyongyang sit down again, they can achieve better outcomes by learning from the failure of the past Hanoi summit.
Speaking at the ceremony commemorating the eighth anniversary of the September 19 Pyongyang Joint Declaration and inter-Korean military agreement, held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on September 18, 2026, Moon identified the restoration of the September 19 inter-Korean military agreement as the most urgent task at hand. He called for reconnecting the severed military communication lines and reviving accident-prevention mechanisms first, in order to build a more robust crisis-management system.
"We must be able to respond with dignity to one-sided and unreasonable external demands that the people cannot accept," Moon said, asking citizens to "come together so that the government can conduct dignified diplomacy."
At the ceremony, President Lee Jae-myung, in a congratulatory address read on his behalf by Political Affairs Secretary Kim Kyung-soo, said the September 19 Pyongyang Joint Declaration and inter-Korean military agreement would be taken as a milestone in restoring peace on the Korean Peninsula. National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik praised the September 19 agreement as a historic achievement and proposed holding inter-Korean parliamentary talks.
Former President Moon and his wife also attended, viewing a photo exhibition marking the eighth anniversary held in the lobby of the National Assembly Members' Office Building.
