China welcomes positive results of inter-Korean summit

BEIJING—China welcomes “positive results” yielded from an inter-Korean summit on promoting peace and cooperation on the Korean Peninsula, said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao here on Thursday.
“China always supports two sides of the Korean Peninsula to improve bilateral relations and realize reconciliation and cooperation through dialogue,” Liu said. “We welcomes the positive results of inter-Korean summit and believes that it is conducive to the peaceful progress of the Korean Peninsula and to the peace and stability in the region,” Liu said. President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Roh Moo-hyun traveled to Pyongyang, capital of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), on Tuesday for the inter-Korean summit, the second of its kind since the Korean Peninsula was divided more than half a century ago.
Roh’s predecessor, Kim Dae-jung, traveled to the DPRK for the first inter-Korean summit in June 2000. Roh and the DPRK top leader Kim Jong Il signed a joint declaration in Pyongyang Thursday, reaffirming their commitment to promoting peace on the peninsula and economic cooperation between the two sides. South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and top leader of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) KimJong Il signed a joint declaration in Pyongyang Thursday, said a news release issued in Seoul.
The Declaration on the Advancement of South-North Korean Relations, Peace and Prosperity was signed at the Paekhawon State Guesthouse at 1:00 p.m.(0400 GMT), said the news release. According to the eight-point declaration, “historic meetings and discussions” were held during Roh’s three-day visit to Pyongyang. “At the meetings and talks, the two sides have reaffirmed the spirit of the June 15 Joint Declaration and had frank discussions on various issues related to realizing the advancement of South-North relations, peace on the Korean Peninsula, common prosperity of the Korean people and unification of Korea,” said the declaration.
It said the two sides, “expressing confidence that they can forge a new era of national prosperity and unification on their own initiative if they combine their will and capabilities,” made the declaration to expand and advance inter-Korean relations. South Korea and the DPRK “have agreed to resolve the issue of unification on their own initiative and according to the spirit of ‘by-the-Korean-people-themselves,’” the document said. The declaration said the two sides have also agreed to transform inter-Korean relations into “ties of mutual respect and trust, transcending the differences in ideology and systems.”
“The South and the North have agreed to overhaul their respective legislative and institutional apparatuses in a bid to develop inter-Korean relations in a reunification-oriented direction,” it said. The declaration calls for ending military hostility between the two sides. “The South and the North have agreed not to antagonize each other, reduce military tension, and resolve issues in dispute through dialogue and negotiation,” it said.
South Korea and the DPRK will create a special peace zone in the Yellow Sea west of the Korean Peninsula, said the document.—Xinhua