South Korean president lands in North Korea for latest summit

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un greeted South Korean President Moon Jae-in with a lavish welcome ceremony at Sunan International Airport in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Kim and his wife, Ri Sol Ju, hugged the first couple from the South at the red-carpeted airfield as a crowd of thousands lined up to cheer for them — some holding national flags, some holding unified-peninsula flags and some holding colorful plastic bouquets.

North Korea’s ceremonial guards honored the South’s delegation. Kim’s influential sister, Kim Yo Jong, first vice department director of the central committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, also was on hand to escort the visitors.

Moon flew to Pyongyang Tuesday for the third inter-Korean summit with Kim.

Moon’s delegation of 200, people from all walks of life including businessmen and musicians, landed around 10 a.m. local time. Moon headed to Paekhwawon Resort, where he will stay for the three-day visit. The two leaders of the two Koreas are expected to have separate luncheons and begin summit talk afterwards.

A priority on the agenda is to ease military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Im Jong-seok, the South Korean presidential office’s chief of staff, said at a press conference Monday. The two leaders will spend considerable time reviewing in detail the progress of their joint agreement made in April and then draw up a “concrete and practical” agreement.

Moon also will focus on bridging the gap between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump regarding denuclearization. So far, the U.S. wants concrete steps by the North to prove denuclearization, for example, a “list” of nuclear facilities. On the other hand, North Korea wants a regime-security guarantee that includes declaring the Korean War over and signing a non-aggression peace treaty.

It’s “difficult to have an optimistic outlook” on the progress of denuclearization, although it will depend on the honest conversations between Moon and Kim to reach such an agreement, Im said.