DPRK officials and a group of Americans including Korea and nuclear experts reportedly held talks on Monday in Oslo, Norway, in the latest in a series of secret meetings between the two sides in the absence of official dialogue.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency citing diplomatic sources, this was the first of the “Track II” meetings in half a year. The previous session was held in Geneva, Switzerland.
There has been no official dialogue between the US government and the DPRK since Kim Jong Un assumed power in 2011.
Yonhap quoted another source as saying that the dialogue opened in a suburb of Oslo and will continue through Tuesday.
The news agency said Choe Son Hui, who is in charge of US affairs at the DPRK's foreign ministry, led the DPRK delegation and her counterpart is Suzanne DiMaggio, director and senior fellow at New America, a think tank based in Washington, DC.
The talks come amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, with some indications the DPRK could be preparing to conduct its sixth nuclear test.
US President Donald Trump said recently that he would not rule out meeting with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un if an appropriate environment is created.
Rex Tillerson, US Secretary of State, also said that his country will seek talks with the DPRK over the reclusive state's nuclear weapons program.
China has welcomed Tillerson’s remarks, endorsing a strategy of dealing with issues through dialogue and negotiation.
"We hope that the US will strengthen contact with the DPRK to build consensus and mutual trust,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang on Monday.
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