Duterte in Seoul

[Anchor Lead]

President Moon Jae-in has hosted Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for a bilateral summit in Seoul. The Philippines reaffirmed its support for the South Korean government's efforts to realize denuclearization and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula. The two sides also agreed to further boost bilateral cooperation in various areas.​

[Pkg]

President Moon Jae-in held a summit with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for the second time since he took office. The two leaders sat down together for both small-scale and expanded meetings and reaffirmed the Philippine government's support for Seoul's efforts to achieve denuclearization and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.

[Soundbite] Rodrigo Duterte(Philippine President) : "North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appears to have changed his mind. I think that there will be no problem to produce an agreement on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

Moon assessed that the Philippine president's visit served as an important occasion to further enhance their countries' friendly and cooperative ties. The two presidents promised to promote bilateral investment while significantly increasing the trade volume between the two countries, which currently stands at 15 billion U.S. dollars. They also agreed to designate 2019 as the year of boosting mutual exchanges, as next year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between South Korea and the Philippines. Duterte promised that Manila will pay continuous attention to better protecting Korean people living in the Philippines. In response, Moon pledged to expand efforts to support Philippine workers and multi-cultural families in Korea.