WATCH | Where is Nancy Pelosi? Where did she go straight from Taiwan?

Following her well-publicized travel to Taiwan, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in South Korea on Thursday, where she had visits to the North Korean border on her itinerary, according to AFP. The heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), where the forces of the two neighbours stand face to face, will be visited by Pelosi, who landed in Seoul late on Wednesday. The SPAR19 US Air Force jet Pelosi used for travelling is the most-tracked aircraft in the world right now.

She would be the highest-ranking US official to travel to the hamlet of Panmunjom, which serves as a site of inter-Korean peace since North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met with then-president Donald Trump there in 2019. When Pelosi visited with Kim Jin-pyo, speaker of the National Assembly in Seoul, they spoke about North Korea's nuclear weapons programmes. Kim Jin-pyo read from a joint statement that the two "expressed concern over the grave situation in which North Korea's level of threat is heightening."

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This year, North Korea has launched a record-breaking flurry of weapons tests, including the first launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile at the full range since 2017. The two lawmakers pledged their support for the leaders of the two nations' attempts to persuade Pyongyang to denuclearize and advocated for "strong and extended deterrence against North Korea."

Also Read:Pelosi in Taiwan: How SPAR19 became the most tracked flight of all time

Pelosi praised the "special" relationship between South Korea and the United States at a brief press conference in Seoul, but she made no mention of her travel to Taipei and refused to accept any questions. She had disregarded many Chinese warnings not to travel to Taiwan, which China regards as its territory. Any such travel, according to Beijing, would be seen as a serious provocation. Large-scale military exercises have since been conducted all across the island.

(with inputs from agencies)