| April
1. | - President Moon Jae-in, in a
meeting with senior presidential aides, makes remarks.
- (Regarding the ROK-US summit) “The ROK government
steadfastly adheres to the principle of ensuring the success
of the peace process on the Korean Peninsula regardless of
any obstacle that may arise, and President Trump is strongly
committed to concluding the negotiations with North Korea
through continued dialogue. The upcoming ROK-US Summit will
take place as the two sides come together. I hope North
Korea will respond positively to the efforts of Seoul and
Washington.”
- “The Republic of Korea and the United
States maintain close communication and coordination that
befits the history of our alliance that goes back more than
60 years. We are also very much on the same page when it
comes to our shared objective of achieving complete
denuclearization and establishing a permanent peace system
on the Korean Peninsula. At the upcoming ROK-US summit, I
will engage in in-depth discussions with President Trump on
how we can work together to advance the peace process on the
Korean Peninsula, including the resumption of North Korea-US
dialogue, complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,
and the creation of a virtuous cycle of inter-Korean and
US-North Korea relations.” |
| April 1. | - The ROK
government begins preparations to implement the Agreement on
the Implementation of the Historic Panmunjeom Declaration in
the Military Domain.
- Making preparations for a joint
excavation of remains including the removal of landmines in
Hwasalmeori (Arrowhead) Hill in Cheorwon, Gangwon
Province.
- Trial navigation of a private vessel on
the South’s side in the waterways of the Han River estuary
that are to be jointly used. |
| April 2. | - President Moon,
in an expanded tourism strategy meeting, makes
remarks.
- “Paradoxically, the Korean Peninsula the
last remaining territory – in the world still divided by
Cold War rivalry – can leverage peace tourism and
eco-tourism as a means to leap forward.”
- (Regarding
security-focused DMZ tourism) “If peace and ecological
tourism are added to this, tourism demand should rise as
peace progresses on the Korean Peninsula. We will actively
support peace tourism and eco-tourism so that future
generations can reflect on peace and security simultaneously
and enjoy a clean and beautiful environment, unlike the
periods of conflict and environmental degradation through
which my generation suffered.” |
| April 3. | - The ROK
government begins the renovation of 13 reunion centers in
the South for separated families.
|
| April 3. | - The
Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Promotion Council
holds its 304th meeting.
- Deliberating and resolving
the proposal, Support of the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund
to Create the DMZ Peace Trails. |
| April 4. | - The emergency
planning committee for the Corporate Association of the
Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) announces an appeal
addressed to US President Trump that calls for sanctions
exemption of the GIC.
|
| April
5. | - The ROK National Security
Office gives a written briefing on a meeting at the crisis
management center.
- President Moon said, “If the
forest fire spreads to the North, you should consult the
North to put out the fire.” |
| April 5. | - The ROK
government notifies the North of the development of the
forest fire in Goseong, Gangwon Province.
|
| April 5-12. | - The
taekwondo demonstration teams of South and North Korea give
a joint performance in Europe (Vienna, Lausanne, and
Geneva).
|
| April 8. |
- The emergency planning committee for
the Corporate Association of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex
(GIC) delivers a petition to the US embassy to South Korea
calling for sanctions exemption of the GIC.
|
| April 9. | - North
Korea holds an expanded meeting of the Political Bureau of
the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea.
|
| April 9. | - Japan decides to again extend its
unilateral sanctions on North Korea for another two
years.
|
| April 9. | - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
testifies before a Senate Foreign Relations Committee
hearing on the State Department budget request.
- (Can
the US not lift sanctions until the complete, verifiable,
and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea?) “I want
to leave a little space there. From time to time, there are
particular provisions that if we were making substantial
progress that one might think that was the right thing to do
to achieve.” |
| April 10. |
- North Korea holds the fourth
plenary session of the 7th Central Committee of the Workers’
Party of Korea.
- Discussing three agenda: holding
higher the banner of self-reliance in socialist
construction; a plan for the composition of the State
Guidance Organ submitted to the Supreme People’s Assembly;
and the organizational issues.
- Chairman Kim Jong Un
emphasized “the need to more vigorously advance socialist
construction by virtue of the self-supporting national
economy and under the uplifted banner of
self-reliance.” |
| April 11. |
- The leaders of the ROK and the US
hold a summit in Washington.
- (Opening remarks by
President Trump) “Our relationship has never been better.
Great progress has been made in North Korea, too. Kim Jong
Un has been, really, somebody that I’ve gotten to know very
well and respect.”
- (Opening remarks by President
Moon) “The Republic of Korea is absolutely on the same page
when it comes to the end state of the complete
denuclearization of North Korea. And I can reassure you that
we will remain in such great cooperation with the United
States. There will be no daylight until we achieve our
ultimate goal.” |
| April
11-12. | - North Korea holds the
first meeting of the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly.
-
(Address by Chairman Kim Jong Un) “Our position is to
unwaveringly hold fast to and thoroughly implement the
inter-Korean declarations despite every possible difficulty
and obstacle .If the US proposes the holding of the third
DPRK-… U.S. summit under the condition that the country has
the right stance, we are willing to try it one more
time.” |
| April 12. | - The assessment team of the UN’s World
Food Program (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) completes its assessment of food security in North
Korea (March 29 -April 12).
|
| April 15. | - President
Moon, in a meeting with senior presidential aides, makes
remarks.
- “The Republic of Korea and the United
States reaffirmed their common goals of achieving complete
denuclearization and establishing permanent peace on the
Korean Peninsula through a diplomatic solution; the
reduction of military tensions and the improvement in
inter-Korean relations are helping maintain the momentum of
dialogue for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula; and
the top-down approach based on trust and commitment among
the leaders of the two Koreas and the United States is
essential for the peace process on the Korean
Peninsula.”
- “President Trump also expressed his
willingness to hold a trilateral summit between the two
Koreas and the US if Chairman Kim makes a decision. Seoul
and Washington will work closely together to ensure a
virtuous cycle between inter-Korean and U.S.-DPRK
relations.” |
| April 16. |
- The UN Security Council Sanctions
Committee on North Korea approves sanctions exemptions of
the equipment for the joint excavation of Manwoldae, a
Goryeo-era palace in Gaeseong.
|
| April 17. | - The ROK
Speaker of the National Assembly delivers a congratulatory
letter to the new president of the Presidium of the Supreme
People’s Assembly of the DPRK.
|
| April 22. | - The ROK
National Assembly proposes a resolution urging humanitarian
support for North Korea.
|
| April 24. | - US Secretary
of State Pompeo, in an interview with CBS, says that if the
denuclearization negotiations break down, “then we’ll have
to, obviously, change paths.”
|
| April 25. | - The leaders of
North Korea and Russia hold a summit in Vladivostok.
-
Exchanging opinions on the situation and pressing issues;
Kim’s expression of
positions on North Korea-US dialogue; increasing bilateral
exchange and promoting economic cooperation projects; and
Kim’s invitation of Putin to North Korea. |
| April 25. | - A
spokesperson for the Committee for the Peaceful
Reunification of the Country, in a statement, condemns the
ROK-US joint air force drills.
|
| April 27. | - Seoul holds a
peace performance event marking the first anniversary of the
Panmunjeom Declaration on the southern side of
Panmunjeom.
|
| April 27. |
- The Goseong section of the DMZ
Peace Trails opens to the public.
|
| April 30. | - The members
of the emergency planning committee for the Corporate
Association of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) apply
for approval to visit the North to check their assets in the
GIC.
|
| April 30. | - The ROK government completes the
renovation work of 13 reunion centers in the South for
separated families.
|
| April
30. | - The National Civil Council
for Social Dialogue on a Vision for Peace and Unification
holds an inaugural meeting.
|
| April 30. | - North Korea’s
First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui denounces US
Secretary of State Pompeo for saying that Washington will
“have to change paths.”
- “Our determination to
achieve denuclearization remains unchanged and we will
denuclearize in due time, but it can be possible only under
the condition that the US changes its current method of
calculation and re-establishes its stance.” |
