US proposes holding expert-level nuclear dialogue with North Korea
(Baonghean) - According to a diplomatic source, the US has proposed that North Korea hold an expert-level meeting this week to discuss the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Yonhap reported on July 14.
The US has proposed holding working-level nuclear talks through a diplomatic channel and is awaiting a response. The proposal comes after US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed to resume nuclear talks during a surprise meeting at the inter-Korean border on June 30.
 |
US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a surprise meeting at the DMZ on June 30. Photo: Reuters |
Nuclear talks have been deadlocked since the Trump-Kim summit ended without a deal in late February. However, after the surprise meeting at the inter-Korean border, US officials expressed hope that talks would resume in the next two to three weeks.
Kim Hyun-chong, deputy director of the Blue House National Security Office, said North Korea had not yet responded to the proposal. Asked whether nuclear talks could resume this month, he said: “We will have to watch and wait.”
The US side expressed hope that the resumption of negotiations will take place no later than next week, which is seen as a stepping stone for high-level talks between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-ho, which could be held on the sidelines of the Regional Security Forum scheduled to take place early next month in Bangkok.
The US has not yet proposed a specific location for the meeting, leaving it up to North Korea to choose. Possible locations include the border village of Panmunjom, Pyongyang and Sweden.
US Special Envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun will represent the US at the meeting, while his North Korean counterpart is expected to be former North Korean Ambassador to Vietnam Kim Myong-gil.
