US issues statement on historic inter-Korean dialogue
The United States welcomed the start of inter-Korean dialogue on January 9, while announcing continued sanctions against North Korea.
The United States welcomed inter-Korean talks on North Korea’s participation in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and discussions on easing military tensions with South Korea, but stressed that it would continue its campaign of maximum pressure on Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear weapons.
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| North and South Korean officials during talks on January 9. Photo: Yonhap |
"The United States welcomes the January 9 meeting between South Korea and North Korea to ensure the safe, secure and successful Pyeongchang Winter Olympics," Yonhap quoted State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert as saying.
"The United States continues to engage with South Korean officials to ensure that members of the North Korean delegation to the Winter Olympics do not violate UN Security Council sanctions imposed on North Korea's nuclear and missile programs," the State Department spokesman added.
The US State Department spokesman also noted that, in a phone call last week, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump agreed to continue to put pressure on Pyongyang to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
"North Korea's participation is an opportunity for Pyongyang to see the value of ending its international isolation by denuclearizing," a White House National Security Council spokesman told Yonhap.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders later asserted that the North Korean delegation's participation in the Olympics would not affect the US's participation. Some Americans, including Senator Lindsey Graham, said that the US should withdraw if North Korea participates in the Olympics.
OfficialSouth Korea and North KoreaOn January 9, the two sides met at the border village of Panmunjom to discuss the North Korean delegation's participation in the Winter Olympics taking place from February 9-25 in PyeongChang, South Korea.
This isinter-Korean high-level talksThe first since December 2015 and proposed by Seoul after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un declared his willingness to engage in talks and send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in his New Year's address.
