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South Korea will open a press center next week to accommodate the massive number of journalists likely to come from home and abroad to cover the upcoming historic inter-Korean summit, the preparation committee and government officials said Monday.



The press center will open at the KINTEX exhibition hall north of Seoul on April 26, according to the officials. Its launch will come a day before South and North Korean leaders will hold what will be the third inter-Korean summit talks in history at the truce village of Panmunjom.



It is expected that more than 2,000 foreign and local journalists and related staff workers will gather at the press center to cover the historic event.



Taking up an area of around 1,000 square meters, the press center will provide around 1,000 seats, along with special purpose rooms for press briefings and interviews. The size is around seven times larger than the press centers that operated during the 2000 and 2007 summits.



Major events unfolding at Panmunjom will be briefed and broadcasted live there. For foreign reporters, simultaneous interpretation services will likely be provided.



A separate press center will also be established at Panmunjom to allow pool reporters to cover the inter-Korea summit, they said.





An image of the online platform for the inter-Korean summit (Yonhap)

In a related move, an exclusive online platform at www.koreasummit.kr will be operational from noon on Tuesday to provide up-to-date information on the summit to both journalists and the general public.Key information provided through the platform will be available in nine languages, including English, Chinese, Japanese, French, German and Russian, they said.The inter-Korean summit is drawing keen attention amid hopes that it could provide a breakthrough in the North's nuclear stalemate. This comes after the North continued to carry out missile and nuclear provocations up until late last year and sparked concerns over possible military action against the North's nuclear program.The two Koreas are expected to discuss ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, establish lasting peace and improve inter-Korean relations.The talks will be followed by an unprecedented US-North Korea summit likely to be held either in May or June. (Yonhap) </s> A group of foreign journalists has departed by train to watch the dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear test site after eight reporters from South Korea received last-minute permission to join them.

The remote site deep in the mountains of the North’s sparsely populated north-east interior is expected to have a formal closing ceremony in the next day or two, depending on the weather.

The closing was announced by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ahead of his planned summit with US President Donald Trump next month.

The train trip was expected to take eight to 12 hours, followed by several hours on a bus and then an hour’s hike to the site itself.

The journalists were put in sleeping cars on the train, four bunks to a compartment.

The compartments had windows covered with blinds, and the journalists were told not to open the blinds throughout the journey.

Media were also expected to pay their own costs for the trip. The train fare was 75 dollars per person round trip. Each meal was 20 dollars.

North Korea had earlier refused to grant entry visas to the South Korean journalists after the North cut off high-level contact with Seoul to protest over joint US-South Korean military exercises.

But North Korea accepted the list of the South Korean journalists to attend via a cross-border communication channel.

The journalists from the MBC television network and News1 wire service took a special government flight later on Wednesday to go to the North’s north-eastern coastal city of Wonsan.

The other journalists from the United States, the UK, China and Russia arrived in Wonsan on Tuesday.

The North’s eleventh-hour decision to allow the South Koreans to join came just after Mr Trump met South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Washington to try to keep the Kim-Trump summit from going off the rails.

Mr Trump indicated he believes the meeting will take place, but left open the possibility it would be delayed or even cancelled if a fruitful outcome does not seem likely.

The summit could offer a historic chance for peace on the Korean Peninsula.

But there has been increasing pessimism about the meeting after North Korea scrapped the inter-Korean talks and threatened to do the same for the Kim-Trump summit in protest at the South Korea-US military drills and what it calls Washington’s push for “one-sided” disarmament.

The North’s decision to close the Punggye-ri nuclear test site has generally been seen as a welcome gesture by Mr Kim to set a positive tone ahead of the summit.

Even so, it is not an irreversible move and would need to be followed by many more significant measures to meet Mr Trump’s demands for real denuclearisation.

By bringing in the foreign media, mainly television networks, the North is apparently hoping to have images of the closing – including explosions to collapse tunnel entrances – broadcast around the world.

But it has not invited international inspectors to the ceremony, which limits its value as a serious concession. </s> President Donald Trump has hailed North Korea‘s announcement that it will be ceasing nuclear and ballistic missile testing, and will soon shutter its nuclear test site.

Trump tweeted that the news represented “big progress,” and said he was looking forward to his upcoming summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said earlier Saturday that the country would suspend nuclear testing activity ahead of upcoming negotiations with South Korea and the U.S., adding that the move was part of a shift in focus towards improving its national economy.

However, the North didn’t indicate whether it’s willing to get rid of its existing arsenal of weapons.

READ MORE: North Korea says it will suspend nuclear and missile testing

South Korea’s presidential Blue House also welcomed the announcement, which came a day after the installation of the first-ever telephone hotline between the leaders of North and South Korea.

“The decision represents meaningful progress on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, for which the world has been longing,” read a statement from the Blue House.

“This will contribute to creating a very positive environment for the success of the upcoming 2018 Inter-Korean Summit and the summit between North Korea and the U.S. We will do our utmost to prepare for the summit so that it can lead the way toward denuclearization and toward the permanent establishment of peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

READ MORE: North, South Korea connect hotline between leaders ahead of rare summit

The inter-Korean summit between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in will take place Apr. 27 at the border truce village on Panmunjom.

Kim is then expected to meet with Trump in May or June.

— With files from the Associated Press </s> SINGAPORE (AP) — The small island nation of Singapore, which prides itself on law and order, is feeling the pressure of more than 3,000 members of the press arriving for a historic summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The heavy media presence along with stringent security measures for the summit Tuesday has added to the frenzy unusual for the laid-back tropical state.

For over a week, journalists have been staking out Singapore’s luxury hotels, airports and government buildings to catch a glimpse of officials involved in summit preparations.

Unruly ones have already crossed red lines. Police said Friday they arrested two South Korean journalists from the national broadcaster KBS suspected of trespassing in the residence of the North Korean ambassador. </s> SINGAPORE: Two South Korean men were arrested on Thursday (Jun 7) for allegedly trespassing at the home of the North Korean ambassador in Joo Chiat.

The men, aged 42 and 45, are working for South Korean broadcaster KBS News, said the Singapore police in a news release on Friday, adding that they were alerted to the case at about 3.50pm.

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Two other South Koreans, a 31-year-old working for KBS News and a 29-year-old guide and interpreter for the group, are under investigation.

All three men from KBS News are not accredited media personnel in Singapore, police added.

KBS said in an emailed statement it was ready to take any action Singapore authorities deemed necessary.

"We do not know exactly what the situation is or whether it is illegal. We will respect the results of the investigation by the local police and will take necessary measures as soon as the results come out," KBS said.

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The national public broadcaster of South Korea operates radio, television and online services.

When asked about the arrests, a spokesman for South Korea's presidential Blue House said it would use "utmost diplomatic effort to prevent such troubles" and urged journalists to be "cautious and prudent".

The issue was seriously discussed during a tea meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his officials earlier in the day, Yonhap news agency cited presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom as saying to reporters.

The North Korean flag (right) seen at the entrance of the ambassador's house in Joo Chiat.(Photo: Fann Sim)

The arrests come days before Singapore is due to host the highly anticipated summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un on Jun 12. Authorities have reminded all foreigners visiting Singapore to abide by local laws.

More than 3,000 foreign journalists are expected to fly in to cover the summit.

“Those who break the law will be dealt with firmly, and this may include termination of visas and repatriation,” said the police.

“Members of the media who commit any offence in Singapore will also not be accredited and thus will not be able to cover the summit between the United States of America and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”

If convicted of criminal trespass, the South Korean men could be jailed for up to three months, fined up to S$1,500 or both. </s> South Korea says it will remove propaganda-broadcasting loudspeakers from the border with North Korea. The announcement came three days after the leaders of the two Koreas agreed to work together to achieve a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and end hostile acts against each other along their border during their rare summit talks.

Seoul’s Defense Ministry said on Monday it will pull back dozens of its frontline loudspeakers tomorrow. It says Seoul expects Pyongyang to do the same.

Read | North Korea to align with South’s time zone as first practical step toward reconciliation

South Korea had turned off its loudspeakers ahead of Friday’s summit talks, and North Korea responded by halting its own broadcasts. Seoul had blasted propaganda messages and K-pop songs from border loudspeakers since the North’s fourth nuclear test in early 2016. The North quickly matched the South’s action with its own border broadcasts.

Meanwhile, North Korea’s chief ally China said its foreign minister will visit Pyongyang this week following the historic summit between the leaders of the two Koreas. The trip by Wang Yi comes as Beijing and Pyongyang continue an effort to repair ties that have suffered from tensions in recent years, and ahead of a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and the North’s leader Kim Jong Un.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App </s> PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) U.S. President Donald Trump’s daughter toured the 2018 Winter Olympics on Saturday, the morning after telling South Korea’s president that she will use her visit to the Pyeongchang Games to advocate maximum pressure on North Korea to halt its nuclear program.

Ivanka Trump, who is one of her father’s close advisers, is leading the U.S. delegation at this weekend’s closing ceremony for the Pyeongchang Games. Under cloudy skies, she watched her first event Saturday morning – big-air snowboarding.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in highlighted to Trump how the Olympics have served as a vehicle for dialogue between the two Koreas, and said the U.S. and South Korea should make use of the current mood of rapprochement between the Koreas in seeking denuclearization.

At a closed-door meeting before a banquet Friday night at the presidential compound, Moon told Trump that talks on denuclearization and the inter-Korean dialogue must move forward side by side, Moon’s press secretary, Yoon Young-chan, told reporters. Trump responded by pushing for joint efforts by the U.S. and South Korea to apply maximum pressure on North Korea, Yoon said.

The differences in how the U.S. and South Korea hope to achieve denuclearization were also apparent during the banquet. In her remarks, Trump said she was in South Korea to celebrate the Olympics and to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to a ”maximum pressure campaign to ensure that the Korean Peninsula is denuclearized.”

On Friday, the Trump administration announced sanctions on more than 50 vessels, shipping companies and trade businesses to turn up the pressure on North Korea. U.S. officials said that Trump had discussed the action with Moon ahead of the announcement in Washington.

In Pyeongchang on Saturday morning, Ivanka Trump watched snowboarders go on runs at the big-air jump. A smiling Trump, wearing a Team USA hat and red snowsuit, chatted with members of her delegation and South Korea first lady Kim Jung-suk. Also with her was IOC board member and 1998 hockey gold medalist Angela Ruggiero.

A high-level North Korean delegation will also attend Sunday’s Olympic closing ceremony, but the South Korean government said it’s unlikely that Ivanka Trump will meet the North Koreans. Vice President Mike Pence, who attended the Olympics’ opening ceremony, sat awkwardly in a VIP box with the younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un behind him. The two had no apparent contact.

Moon hopes to make the Olympics an avenue for peace on the divided Korean Peninsula.

”North Korea’s participation in the Winter Olympic Games has served as an opportunity for us to engage in active discussions between the two Koreas and this has led to lowering of tensions on the peninsula and an improvement in inter-Korean relations,” Moon said.

Moon met Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and Kim Yong Nam, North Korea’s nominal head of state, a day after the opening ceremony and urged North Korea to do more to engage in a dialogue with the United States.

While the games appear to have paved the way for possible rapprochement between the Koreas, U.S. and North Korean officials have yet to make direct contact. Earlier this week, the U.S. government said Pence had been set to meet North Korean officials during his visit to South Korea, but that the North Korean side canceled at the last minute.

For now, there are no signs that Ivanka Trump will meet Kim Yong Chol, vice chairman of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party Central Committee, who is to attend the closing ceremony.

The White House has emphasized that the purpose of her visit is to celebrate the achievements of the athletes, noting that she is a winter sports enthusiast herself. She is expected to attend the games on Saturday before Sunday’s closing ceremony.

Errin Haines Whack is a national writer for The Associated Press. Youkykung Lee contributed to this report from Seoul. </s> SEOUL: North and South Korea began dismantling loudspeakers that blared propaganda across their heavily fortified border on Tuesday (May 1), South Korea's defense ministry said, fulfilling a promise made at last week's historic summit.

The moves are the first practical, if small, steps toward reconciliation and come after an agreement in the joint declaration signed at Friday's summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and the North's Kim Jong Un.

Activity at several spots along the border indicated North Koreans were taking down the speakers, a defense official said. South Korea started doing the same at 2pm local time, he said.

For decades, with only a few breaks, the two sides have pumped out propaganda from huge banks of speakers as a form of psychological warfare. The South broadcast a mixture of news, Korean pop songs and criticism of the northern regime, while the North blasted the southern government and praised its own socialist system.

As a sign of goodwill, the South had stopped its propaganda ahead of the summit, and the North followed suit.

In another small sign after Friday's summit, North Korea said Monday it would shift its clocks forward half an hour to align with its southern neighbour starting May 5.

The incremental steps come amid speculation about where Kim will meet US President Donald Trump, who said their planned summit could take place in three or four weeks.

Trump tweeted Monday that meeting Kim at the Peace House in the demilitarised zone, where Moon met Kim, would be an excellent venue.

"There's something that I like about it because you're there, you're actually there. Where, if things work out, there's a great celebration to be had on the site, not in a third-party country," Trump later told reporters at the White House.

But a senior US official said Singapore was still high on the list of potential sites.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Saturday Singapore had not had any request to host the Kim-Trump meeting.

South Korea's presidential Blue House seemed to welcome the prospect of hosting the meeting in Panmunjom, the border village where the Peace House is located.

"Panmunjom is quite meaningful as a place to erode the divide and establish a new milestone for peace," a senior presidential official told reporters, asking not be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. "Wouldn't Panmunjom be the most symbolic place?" </s> The rival Koreas have opened their first liaison office near their tense border to facilitate better communication and exchanges ahead of their leaders’ summit in Pyongyang next week. The office’s opening at the North Korean border town of Kaesong is the latest in a series of reconciliatory steps the Koreas have taken this year. The office is the first of its kind since the Koreas were divided at the end of the Second World War. The Koreas so far have been using telephone and fax-like communication channels when they want to arrange talks and exchange messages. But those channels have been often suspended when tensions rose over North Korea’s nuclear programme.

In an opening ceremony at Kaesong, South Korea’s Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said the office will become the “cradle of Korean co-prosperity”. “We’ll sit face to face, exchange our thoughts fast and accurately and put our heads together to resolve difficult matters,” he said in remarks distributed by his office. About 15-20 South Korean officials are expected to stay at the office and a nearby lodging facility in Kaesong during the weekdays and take turns staffing the office on weekends, according to Seoul’s Unification Ministry. They will deal with North Korean officials stationed at the office to discuss various inter-Korean issues, exchange messages from their capitals and facilitate civilian exchange programmes, the ministry said in a statement. Kaesong is where the Koreas’ now-stalled jointly run factory complex is located.

The park, which combined South Korean initiatives, capital and technology with North Korea’s cheap labour, was seen as a test case for unification of the Koreas. But its operation was suspended in 2016 amid an escalating standoff over North Korea’s long-range rocket launch. The resumption of the Kaesong park and other dormant inter-Korean cooperation projects will not likely happen anytime soon because US-led international sanctions on North Korea remain in place. Seoul officials said workers renovated some of the buildings used in the complex to use as the liaison office and the lodging facility. The liaison office’s opening came before South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meet for the third time this year next week to discuss denuclearisation of the peninsula and other issues. During the previous meetings with Moon and a separate historic summit with President Donald Trump, Mr Kim has expressed his vague commitment to complete denuclearisation of the peninsula. He has also dismantled his nuclear and rocket-engine testing sites. But nuclear diplomacy was later stalemated as US officials demanded Mr Kim take more significant steps before receiving concessions like a joint declaration to end the Korean War. Mr Moon is to fly to Pyongyang next Tuesday for a three-day trip that he says will focus on facilitating talks between the United States and North Korea and finding ways to ease a military standoff along the Koreas’ heavily fortified border.
South Korea is expected to open a press center and online platform in preparations for the summit with North Korea.