<Anchor>



US President Biden announced that he had confirmed the need for complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula after speaking with Japanese Prime Minister Suga for the first time since taking office.

The interpretation of what this complete denuclearization means is divided, but the US Department of Defense has sent an answer to SBS.



Correspondent Kim Soo-hyung from Washington reports.



<Reporter>



This is a press release released by the White House in the early morning of today (28th), after US President Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Suga finished a phone call.



The leaders of the United States and Japan have stated that they have confirmed the need for complete denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.



When asked if the US calls for complete denuclearization to require CVID, that is, complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea, a spokesman for the US Department of Defense said, "The principle of denuclearization that is consistently descending from the three countries across various administrations" Replied.



[Park Won-Gon/Professor, Handong University International Area Studies: Previous administrations of the United States have never abandoned the concept of CVID, the complete denuclearization of North Korea.

The purpose of North Korea's denuclearization is clear.

I think it can be judged as CVID.] On



the 24th, the Japanese Defense Minister also said that it had confirmed the CVID policy after talking with the newly inaugurated US Defense Minister Austin.



CVID is a term that strongly opposes North Korea as a method applied only to defeated countries, and the former Trump administration slightly softened the expression and introduced the word FFVD, which is final and fully verified denuclearization.



[Pompeo/Former US Secretary of State (March 2019): We will continue our progress towards the final and fully verified denuclearization of North Korea.]



By avoiding the direct expression of CVID, the US emphasizes complete denuclearization while avoiding the direct expression of CVID

.

It can be interpreted as containing the intention not to irritate North Korea unnecessarily.



(Video coverage: Jeongsik Oh, video editing: Yonghwa Jung)