(LEAD) Moon convenes meeting with top security officials after Trump cancels N.K. summit

(ATTN: UPDATES with more info)

SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in convened a meeting with top security officials on Thursday night after U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly cancelled his planned summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the presidential office said.

Moon called an emergency meeting at Cheong Wa Dae at 11:30 p.m. with his chief of staff, top security adviser, intelligence chief, chief press secretary, and foreign, unification and defense ministers, his press secretary Yoon Young-chan said in a message to reporters.

The presidential office said it is seeking to figure out the background of Trump's decision to call off the June 12 summit with North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un.

"(We) are trying to figure out what President Trump's intention is and the exact meaning of it," presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom told reporters.

Earlier in the day, Trump canceled the summit, citing the North's "tremendous anger and open hostility." Trump informed Kim of the decision in a letter released by the White House, hours after the North dismantled its only known nuclear test site.

"We greatly appreciate your time, patience, and effort with respect to our recent negotiations and discussions relative to a summit long sought by both parties, which was scheduled to take place on June 12 in Singapore," the letter said.

"Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting."

lcd@yna.co.kr
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