UN chief urges Korean leaders to act swiftly on agreements at historic summit

UNITED NATIONS, April 27 (APP)::United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged leaders of North and South Koreas, who met in a Summit Friday, to swiftly implement all agreed actions, including ridding the Peninsula of nuclear arms.
The Secretary-General applauds todays truly historic summit, Guterres Spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said in a statement issued at UN Headquarters in New York. Many around the world were moved by the powerful imagery of the two leaders coming together to advance harmony and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
According to the declaration signed by both leaders and released after the summit, the two nations agreed on a number of measures, including realizing the common goal of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and pursuing phased military arms reduction and talks to declare an official end to the Korean War, which devastated the Peninsula from 1950 to 1953.
An armistice brought about a ceasefire to the Korean War in 1953, but the conflict never officially ended because the parties could not agree to a formal peace treaty.
The Secretary-General salutes the courage and leadership that resulted in the important commitments and agreed actions outlined in the Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Unification of the Korean Peninsula, the Spokesman said.
The UN chief counts on the parties to build on their first meeting and swiftly implement all agreed actions to further inter-Korean trust-building and reconciliation; sincere dialogue; and progress towards sustainable peace and verifiable denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, Dujarric said, adding: The Secretary-General looks forward to these gains being consolidated and advanced at the US-DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) summit expected to take place soon.