China hails meeting of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in; terms it 'historic moment'

Beijing: China on Friday heaped praise on the leaders of the two Korean nations for holding a landmark summit, calling their handshake over the Military Demarcation Line that divides the peninsula a “historic moment”. [caption id=“attachment_4448379” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, hugs South Korean president Moon Jae-in. AP[/caption] “We applaud the Korean leaders’ historic step and appreciate their political decisions and courage,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular press briefing. “We hope and look forward to them taking this opportunity to further open a new journey of long-term stability on the peninsula.” She also cited a poem that reads: “We remain brothers after all the vicissitudes; let’s forgo our old grudges, smiling we meet again.” China is North Korea’s sole major ally but it has supported a series of United Nations sanctions to punish Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile tests. Beijing had pressed for dialogue to peacefully resolve the nuclear crisis.