Rep. Na Kyung-won, floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, attends a general meeting of lawmakers at the National Assembly in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

By Jung Min-ho

South Korea's main opposition party leader has voiced her objection to the possibility that the leaders of the United States and North Korea will sign a declaration during their Hanoi summit to end the Korean War (1950-53).

Rep. Na Kyung-won, floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, said Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un should not proclaim the end of the war during their summit (Feb. 27-28) without South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

"We will never accept it," she said during a general meeting of Assembly members.

"Ending the war without the confirmation of the North's complete denuclearization will only weaken the South Korea-U.S. alliance and likely lead to the pull-out of U.S. forces here."

Her remarks came after presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom mentioned such a scenario, saying Cheong Wa Dae would "welcome any form" of declaration, even if Moon is left out.

The spokesman said Seoul would be fine because Moon and Kim signed a military agreement that was "virtually a declaration to end the war" last September.

Na claimed what the Kim regime is trying to achieve through an end-of-war declaration is to undermine South Korea's military defense against the North.

"North Korea is hiding its intention in the guise of peace," she said.

The spokesman said the war-ending declaration may be on the summit's agenda.

During their first summit in Singapore in June, Trump and Kim agreed to build new relations between their countries and work together for the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," but the agreement was short on details.

Peace declaration supporters say it would pave the way for better U.S.-North Korea relations and therefore the faster denuclearization of the regime. The two have remained technically at war since the Korean War was halted in a truce in 1953.

North Korea has long claimed that it had no choice but to develop nuclear weapons to fend off invasions from the United States, which still keeps 28,000 troops in South Korea.

Meanwhile, a group of 20 U.S. House Democrats has introduced a resolution that would call for an end to the war but also keep U.S. troops in South Korea.

The resolution, introduced a day before the summit, urges the U.S. government to provide a "clear roadmap for achieving a permanent peace regime and the peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

"Historic engagement between South and North Korea has created a once-in-a-generation opportunity to formally end this war," House Armed Services Committee member Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said.

"President Trump must not squander this rare chance for peace. He should work hand in hand with our ally, South Korean President Moon Jae-in, to bring the war to a close and advance toward the denuclearization of the peninsula."