Kim Jong-un Makes History As He Walks Onto South Korean Soil For 3rd Inter-Korean Summit

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made history on Friday, April 27^th as he walked south across the demarcation line and met South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Kim is in South Korea to hold a historic inter-Korean Summit in Panmunjom, the truce village on the north-south border of the peninsula.

The two Korean leaders met at 9:30 a.m. (KST) as the North Korean leader crossed the demarcation line into the South Korean half of the DeMilitarised Zone and shook hands with Moon Jae-in. With this walk, Kim Jong-un became the first North Korean leader to set foot in South Korea. As they finished shaking hands and Kim Jong-un stepped on to South Korean soil, he also invited Moon Jae-in to step back onto North Korean soil. Moon Jae-in obliged Kim and the two shook hands again. "I am happy to meet you,"  Moon Jae-in told Kim  Jong-un, the AFP news agency reports.

The two then proceeded to the Peace House on the southern side of the demilitarized zone, where the summit meetings will take place, and Kim signed the guestbook. "A new history begins now - at the starting point of history and the era of peace," read the message from Kim in the guestbook at the Peace House. The official talks began at 10:30 a.m KST.

The historic meet comes after Kim Jong-un signaled to South Korea’s newly elected leader his willingness to dial down the war rhetoric as well as consider ‘de-nuclearization’ after a year in which Pyongyang claimed it had achieved the capability to produce a nuclear bomb as well as successfully tested intercontinental ballistic missiles. Moon Jae-in for his part has said through out his campaign that attaining peace with North Korea is a primary objective for his government.

As the two leaders sit down for talks, topics, on the agenda, will include a peace settlement, the improvement of inter-Korea relations, denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, as well as the probability of a North Korea-U.S. summit, according to the reports. Kim Jong-un brought  his closest confidantes and advisers along with him when he crossed into South Korea, including his sister Kim Yo-jong.

The talks are also historic as the two Koreas are technically at war as the end to the 1950-53 Korean War came through an armistice by the United Nations.

The duo will attend an elaborate dinner, to be held around 6.30 p.m. local time, that will include symbolic dishes originating from both countries to mark the third inter-Korean summit, but the first to be held in South Korea.

The summit is expected to set the stage for the first meeting between sitting US president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in May or June.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 27, 2018 07:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).