MOON VOWS TO PUSH FOR N. KOREA-U.S. SUMMIT

[Anchor Lead]

President Moon Jae-in has vowed to do his best to have the leaders of the United States and North Korea have a summit before the U.S. presidential election. Cheong Wa Dae says the White House also agrees with the South Korean president, who is eager to find a breakthrough no matter what.

[Pkg]

In a conference call with President Moon Jae-in, the leaders of the European Union reiterated their support for Seoul's efforts to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.

[Soundbite] PRES. MOON JAE-IN(S. KOREA-E.U. SUMMIT) : "I am always thankful to you for your unwavering support for the peace process on the Korean Peninsula."

President Moon said he is determined to have Pyongyang and Washington hold a summit prior to the U.S. presidential election. He added he would work patiently toward maintaining the atmosphere of dialogue among South Korea, North Korea and the United States, and that the E.U. could play an important role. A Cheong Wa Dae official says the White House has been notified of Moon's plan and agrees with it. The official added that Cheong Wa Dae and the White House have been communicating closely since the explosion of the inter-Korean liaison office in North Korea. When asked if Pyongyang has also been notified of the need to hold summit talks with Washington, the Cheong Wa Dae official declined to provide more details citing sensitivity of the matter. The official instead said it hasn't been decided diplomatically yet whether U.S. Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun's visit to South Korea scheduled for this month will have to do anything with the matter. Stephen Biegun said previously although the possibility of North Korea-U.S. summit prior to the U.S. presidential election was low, the door of negotiations was still open.