US aims to achieve North Korea's denuclearization by the end of Trump's first term

Lan Ha• July 26, 2018 10:25

(Baonghean.vn) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the above statement in his speech before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee about President Trump's recent meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Trump administration's "unchanged goal" for North Korea remains complete denuclearization. Photo: AP

Mr Pompeo said North Korea continues to produce fissile material in its nuclear weapons program despite progress towards denuclearisation. However, the US Secretary of State said "progress is being made" in North Korea's denuclearisation process.

Mr. Pompeo also called on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to make a commitment to President Trump to work toward complete denuclearization. "We pursue patient diplomacy, but we will not allow this process to drag on indefinitely," he stressed.
According to Mr. Pompeo, he emphasized this stance in discussions with Vice Chairman of the Korean Workers' Party Kim Yong Chol.

Although admitting that "there is still a long way to go and a major coordination agreement to be made," Mr. Pompeo cited a recent report showing that Pyongyang has begun dismantling its missile test site, as committed by Mr. Kim Jong-un during his summit with President Trump last June in Singapore.
According to Mr. Pompeo, that is a good signal and Washington is monitoring this plan. He affirmed that the "unchanged goal" of President Trump's administration towards North Korea is still complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization.

Image of North Korea's Sohae test site. Photo: 38 North

Previously, on July 23, the website 38 North reported that North Korea appeared to have begun dismantling important facilities at the Sohae missile test site. This could be considered an important move by North Korea since the summit with the US - North Korea.

According to the website, satellite images of activities at the Sohae test site show that North Korea has begun the process of dismantling a building and a missile launch support system.
The website 38 North called this move "an important first step" by North Korea in implementing the commitments reached at the recent US-North Korea summit./.