Two Koreas to hold summit as Kim renews denuclearisation pledge

The leaders of the two Koreas will hold a summit in Pyongyang in September, Seoul said Thursday, as the North's leader Kim Jong Un renewed his commitment to the denuclearisation of the flashpoint peninsula.

The announcement of the September 18-20 summit -- the third between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in this year -- comes as US efforts to dismantle the North's nuclear arsenal have stalled.

The two leaders will meet in the North Korean capital to discuss "practical measures to denuclearise" the Korean peninsula, South Korean National Security Advisor Chung Eui-yong told reporters.

Chung flew to the North on Wednesday where he handed over a personal letter from Moon to Kim, as Seoul seeks to kick-start the diplomacy that led to the landmark summit between US President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader in June, where they pledged to denuclearise the Korean peninsula.

But no details were agreed at the Singapore summit and Washington and Pyongyang have sparred since on what that means and how it will be achieved.

However, in his meeting with Chung, Kim renewed his commitment to that goal, North Korean state media said Thursday.

The two Koreas "should further their efforts to realise the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula", Kim was quoted as saying by KCNA.

"It is our fixed stand and... will to completely remove the danger of armed conflict and horror of war from the Korean peninsula and turn it into the cradle of peace without nuclear weapons and free from nuclear threat." -