Pompeo says U.S. hopes to continue talks with DPRK

World
Europe

The United States is hopeful that it can continue to hold denuclearization talks with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Friday, after DPRK's senior official said to consider suspending talks with the U.S. earlier Friday.

Pompeo, speaking at a news conference in Washington DC, also said he had every expectation that DPRK leader Kim Jong Un would live up to his commitment not to resume nuclear and missile testing.

"We're hopeful that we can continue to have conversations, negotiations," he told reporters. "It's the administration's desire that we continue to have conversations around this," added Pompeo.

Premier Li urges all parties to stay patient on DPRK issue

Earlier on Friday, DPRK's Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui stated that the country is considering suspending talks with the U.S. and may rethink a ban on missile and nuclear tests unless Washington makes concessions.

00:42

She also blamed top U.S. officials for the breakdown of last month's summit in Hanoi, saying the "gangster-like stand of the U.S. will eventually put the situation in danger," according to Russia's Tass news agency and AP.

When asked response to Choe's remarks, Pompeo said it is not the first time the DPRK called the stand of the U.S. "gangster-like."

He then stressed that the Hanoi summit broke up because the offer made by the DPRK did not rise to a level that was acceptable to the United States.

(Cover: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrives at his news conference at the State Department in Washington DC, U.S., March 15, 2019. /VCG Photo)

11158km

Source(s): Reuters