Korean Peninsula Diplomacy: Pompeo: Committed to achieving complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization

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02:23

We start in Seoul, where US Secretary of the State Mike Pompeo, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, and Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono have met to discuss the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Yang Zhao has the details.

US Secretary of the State Mike Pompeo was joined by his counterparts from South Korea and Japan, saying the United States is committed to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

MIKE POMPEO US SECRETARY OF STATE "The world should rest assured that the United States, ROK and Japan remain committed to achieving the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea." "US will not ease sanctions until the North denuclearizes."

South Korean Minister Kang Kyung-wha hopes follow-up consultations will lay out more concrete steps toward denuclearization. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono reiterated the US forces in South Korea will continue to play a crucial role on the Peninsula.

Tuesday's summit between US President Donald Trump and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore has had a mixed outcome for the two US allies.

The DPRK agreed on a full and gradual denuclearization, dropping the threat of an imminent outbreak of war on the Peninsula and surrounding areas.

Trump announced that he would suspend military exercises with South Korea and expressed his hope to eventually withdraw some 28,000 American troops stationed there.

His unexpected declaration threw many into confusion, and exacerbated anxiety for the allies about Washington's long-term commitment to safeguarding the region.

But Pompeo said military drills could resume if DPRK stops negotiating in good faith over its nuclear program.

Pompeo also said he's confident that US-DPRK follow-up talks will resume "sometime in the next week". He didn't know the exact timing, but said he hopes it happens "fairly quickly" after he and DPRK officials return to their countries. Pompeo returns to the US late Thursday.

The Secretary also laid out an ambitious timeline for denuclearization. The Trump administration is hopeful that "major disarmament" steps can occur before the end of the president's first term, in January 2021.