The remark came amid concerns it could be inappropriate for the North Korean leader to inspect the South Korean military. The two Koreas are still technically at war and have engaged in military provocations during the armistice period since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.

The government countered the criticism, saying the honor guard ceremony can be justified as a symbol of rapprochement between the two Koreas and gesture of goodwill before the historic summit.

In fact, North Korea did the same for South Korean leaders during the previous summits in 2000 and 2007. Former President Kim Dae Jung and his successor Roh Moo-hyun were greeted by the North’s military guard when they met with Kim Jung-il, father of current leader Kim Jong-un.

“Even at the height of the confrontation during the Cold War era, the United States and former Soviet Union’s honor guards held welcoming ceremonies for each other’s leaders,” the Defense Ministry said.

When former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev visited Washington for a summit with former US President Ronald Reagan in 1987, the two leaders were greeted by a military honor guard and received a gun salute.