EU says N Korea nuclear decision a ‘positive step’

BRUSSELS: The European Union on Saturday hailed North Korea´s decision to halt nuclear tests and intercontinental missile launches as “a positive, long sought-after step”.

The announcement by Pyongyang´s leader Kim Jong Un shows “full respect for its international obligations and all relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement.

Kim´s declaration comes less than a week before he meets South Korean President Moon Jae-in for a summit in the Demilitarised Zone that divides the peninsula, ahead of an eagerly-awaited encounter with US President Donald Trump. “The European Union looks forward to the upcoming Summit meetings between the President of the Republic of Korea, Moon Jae-in and the leader of the DPRK; and the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the leader of the DPRK.