North Korea has expressed its commitment to "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean peninsula and has not attached conditions, South Korea's president says, but Washington remains wary and has vowed to maintain "maximum pressure" on Pyongyang.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said agreements about denuclearisation, establishing a peace regime and normalisation of relations between the Koreas and the US should not be difficult to reach through a North-South summit next week, and a later summit planned between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump.

"I don't think denuclearisation has different meanings for South and North Korea. The North is expressing a will for a complete denuclearisation," Moon said on Thursday during a lunch with chief executives of Korean media companies.

"They have not attached any conditions that the US cannot accept, such as the withdrawal of American troops from South Korea. All they are talking about is the end of hostile policies against North Korea, followed by a guarantee of security."

CIA Director Mike Pompeo met Kim this month to discuss a proposed summit with Trump and reported that the North Korean leader was not demanding the withdrawal of all US forces as a precondition for the meeting, a US official briefed on Pompeo's trip told Reuters.

However, the official, who did not want to be identified, said that while Kim was open to negotiating "denuclearisation", the term remained undefined and potentially deceptive, given the need for a timetable and an inspection regime.

North Korea has defended its nuclear and missile programs in the face of worldwide condemnation and sanctions as a necessary deterrent against perceived US hostility.

It has said over the years that it could consider giving up its nuclear arsenal if the US removed its troops from South Korea and withdrew its so-called nuclear umbrella of deterrence from South Korea and Japan.

On Wednesday, Trump, who says he plans to meet Kim in late May or early June for an unprecedented summit to try to persuade him to give up his nuclear weapons, reaffirmed the "unwavering" US commitment to maintain that umbrella.

In a joint statement after talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Trump said the US commitment to defend Japan "through the full range of US military capabilities" was "unwavering".

They reiterated their commitment to the "permanent and verifiable denuclearisation of North Korea" and the need for Pyongyang to abandon all of its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs, while vowing stepped up sanctions enforcement.

Trump said on Wednesday that Pompeo formed a "good relationship" with Kim when he met him in Pyongyang and the US President said he hoped the summit would be successful. But Trump warned he would call it off if he did not think it would produce results.

Trump told a joint news conference with Abe that his campaign of "maximum pressure" on North Korea would continue until Pyongyang gave up its nuclear weapons.

In Geneva on Thursday, US Disarmament Ambassador Robert Wood told a news conference North Korea must show that it is "serious about getting rid of its nuclear weapons program" and take "concrete steps", adding: "We've got a long way to go". </s> SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — North Korea said Saturday it is willing to have talks with the United States, but that it rejects preconditions and Washington’s demands that it must first demonstrate its willingness to denuclearize.

During the closing ceremony for the recently concluded Olympics in South Korea, the office of South Korean President Moon Jae-in announced that a North Korean delegate to the Olympics said his country is willing to hold talks with the U.S. President Donald Trump responded by saying talks will happen only “under the right conditions.”

The Trump administration’s position is that North Korea must show a real commitment toward ending its nuclear and missile programs before any talks can take place. The U.S. has applied a series of sanctions in what it says is a “maximum pressure campaign” to force North Korea to disarm.

On Saturday, the spokesperson for North Korea’s foreign ministry said the North would not accept preconditions for talks.

“In decades-long history of the DPRK-U.S. talks, there had been no case at all where we sat with the U.S. on any precondition, and this will be the case in future, too,” the spokesperson said in comments carried by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency. “The U.S. attitude shown after we clarified our intention for DPRK-U.S. dialogue compels us to only think that the U.S. is not interested in resuming the DPRK-U.S. dialogue.”

North Korea is formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

“It is the consistent and principled position of the DPRK to resolve issues in a diplomatic and peaceful way through dialogue and negotiation,” the spokesperson said. “The dialogue we desire is the one designed to discuss and resolve the issues of mutual concern on an equal footing between states.” </s> Seoul [South Korea], May 21 (ANI): The United States and South Korea are working in various ways to resume denuclearisation negotiations with North Korea, said South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul on Tuesday.

"The overall situation shows that we are facing a lull, but I think you should know that we are working in various ways to resume negotiations. South Korea and the US are also sharing the need for keeping the situation under control," he said during a briefing here.

Kim also outlined the importance of providing humanitarian aid to North Korea. "A hungry child knows no politics," he said while quoting former US President Ronald Reagan, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The South Korean official's comment comes as talks regarding denuclearisation have been stalled between the United States and North Korea following the second summit between the two states, which ended abruptly in Vietnam in February earlier this year.

The two sides reportedly failed to resolve their differences on sanctions relief, which led to the summit ending earlier than scheduled. In fact, no joint agreement was issued following the talks.

Meanwhile, South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday highlighted that the "firmness" of the US-South Korea relationship showed in their response to North Korea's recent projectiles launches.

The launches are largely being perceived as a sign of frustration on part of the reclusive state, which has been demanding sanctions relief in exchange for the steps it has taken towards denuclearisation. The United States, meanwhile, has stood firm in its stance of only providing sanctions waivers once complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula is achieved. (ANI) </s> North Korea says it's open to talks with the US but will only do so without preconditions.

North Korea says it's open to talks with the US but will only do so without preconditions.

North Korea has threatened to "counter the US" if the United States holds joint military exercises with South Korea, and said it would not beg for talks with Washington.

The US is due to start joint exercises in early April, a South Korean presidential security adviser said this week, according to Yonhap news agency, the latest in a series of drills that the North has regularly described as a threat.

"If the US finally holds joint military exercises while keeping sanctions on the DPRK, the DPRK will counter the US by its own mode of counteraction and the US will be made to own all responsibilities for the ensuing consequences," North Korea's official KCNA news agency said in its commentary on Saturday, saying the drills would harm reconciliation efforts on the peninsula.

The DPRK is the acronym of the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

On February 23, the US said it was imposing its largest package of sanctions to pressure North Korea to give up its nuclear and missile programs. President Donald Trump warned of a "phase two" that could be "very, very unfortunate for the world" if the steps did not work.

North Korea has slammed Trump's unilateral sanctions against it, but it said it was open to talks with the US during senior North Korean officials' visit to South Korea for the Olympics last month.

The White House said any talks with North Korea must lead to an end of its nuclear program.

North Korea reiterated on Saturday that it was willing to talk to the US but said it would never sit with any precondition.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman was quoted by state media KCNA news agency as saying "we will neither beg for dialogue nor evade the military option claimed by the US".

"Whether peace desired by our nation and the rest of the world settles on the Korean peninsula or a situation that no one desires is developed in the vicious cycle of confrontation depends entirely on the attitude of the US," the spokesman said, according to KCNA.

South Korea plans to send a special envoy to North Korea in response to an invitation from leader Kim Jong Un, South Korean President Moon Jae-in told Trump in a phone call on Thursday. </s> "I reiterate our desire for more African nations to apply concrete diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea," Tillerson said. "African nations can contribute to this goal, and we need, country by country, for nations to take action to support this international effort towards a denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

As part of the maximum pressure campaign, the UN Security Council has imposed multiple rounds of sanctions against Pyongyang over its nuclear and ballistic missile tests. The United States has also called on all countries to cut trade and military ties with North Korea.

READ MORE: N Korea Develops Its Weapons Program, 'While We're Not Talking' — Expert

US media has reported that National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster will meet with his South Korean counterparts in Washington, DC on Thursday to discuss recent talks between the North and South.

South Korean media reports said the envoys would hand over a private message to the United States from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

READ MORE: Will North Korea Agree to Drop Its Nuclear Program? Expert Explains

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have escalated drastically last year due to the North's nuclear activity, which led to the UN Security Council imposing its toughest ever sanctions on the country.

In November 2017, North Korea tested its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, which according to Pyongyang, would have been capable of hitting any part of the US mainland.

READ MORE: Professor: 'Denuclearization of Korea Peninsula is Possible Under NK Conditions' </s> WASHINGTON (XINHUA) - US Secretary of Defence James Mattis reaffirmed on Saturday (April 28) the commitment to defend South Korea, voicing support to diplomatic solution to the Korean Peninsula issue.

Mr Mattis reiterated "the ironclad US commitment" to defend its ally "using the full spectrum of US capabilities" in phone discussion with his South Korean counterpart Song Young Moo on the results of last Friday's inter-Korea summit, Pentagon chief spokesman Dana White said a statement.

The two defence chiefs also expressed commitment to a diplomatic resolution that achieves "complete, verifiable, and irreversible" denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, as reflected in multiple UN Security Council's resolutions, the statement said.

In his conversation with Mr Mattis, Mr Song reviewed the Panmunjom Declaration and the efforts to improve inter-Korea relations while achieving denuclearisation.

The Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Unification of the Korean Peninsula, signed last Friday by South Korean President Moon Jae In and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, pledged joint efforts for national reconciliation, denuclearisation and lasting peace.

Last Friday, Mr Mattis said the United States will discuss with its allies and North Korea the need for US troops to stay stationed on the peninsula.

The United States "will build, through confidence-building measures, a degree of trust if it's going to go forward". he added, referring to the dialogue with North Korea on denuclearising the peninsula.

The US troops have stayed in South Korea ever since the signing of the Korean War armistice treaty in 1953. Bilateral relations are often strained over issues such as defence burden sharing, the US army's harassment of South Korean civilians and Seoul's initiative to take back the war-time command control from Washington, among others. </s> North Korea offers to give up nukes if US vows not to attack

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told his South Korean counterpart at their historic summit that he would be willing to give up his nuclear weapons if the U.S. commits to a formal end to the Korean War and a pledge not to attack the North, Seoul officials said Sunday.

Kim also vowed during his meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday to shut down the North's nuclear test site in May and disclose the process to experts and journalists from South Korea and the United States, Seoul's presidential office said.

While there are lingering questions about whether North Korea will ever decide to fully relinquish its nukes as it heads into negotiations with the U.S., Kim's comments amount to the North's most specific acknowledgement yet that "denuclearization" would constitute surrendering its weapons.

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton reacted coolly to word that Kim would abandon his weapons if the United States pledged not to invade.

Asked on CBS' "Face the Nation" whether the U.S. would make such a promise, Bolton said: "Well, we've heard this before. This is — the North Korean propaganda playbook is an infinitely rich resource."

"What we want to see from them is evidence that it's real and not just rhetoric," he added.

Seoul officials, who have shuttled between Pyongyang and Washington to broker talks between Kim and President Donald Trump that are expected in May or June, said Kim has expressed genuine interest in dealing away his nuclear weapons.

But there has been skepticism because North Korea for decades has been pushing a concept of "denuclearization" that bears no resemblance to the American definition. The North has long vowed to pursue nuclear development unless Washington removes its 28,500 troops from South Korea and the nuclear umbrella defending South Korea and Japan.

During their summit at a truce village on the border, Moon and Kim promised to work toward the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula but made no references to verification or timetables.

Kim also expressed optimism about his meeting with Trump, Moon's spokesman Yoon Young-chan said.

"Once we start talking, the United States will know that I am not a person to launch nuclear weapons at South Korea, the Pacific or the United States," Kim said, according to Yoon.

Yoon also quoted Kim as saying: "If we maintain frequent meetings and build trust with the United States and receive promises for an end to the war and a non-aggression treaty, then why would we need to live in difficulty by keeping our nuclear weapons?"

The Korean Peninsula technically remains in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War was halted with an armistice, not a peace treaty.

The closing of the nuclear test site would be a dramatic but likely symbolic event to set up Kim's summit with Trump. North Korea already announced this month that it has suspended all tests of nuclear devices and intercontinental ballistic missiles and plans to close its nuclear testing ground.

Still, Adam Mount, a senior defense analyst at the Federation of American Scientists, said Kim's comments were significant because they are his most explicit acknowledgement yet that denuclearization means surrendering his nuclear weapons.

"Questions remain about whether Kim will agree to discuss other nuclear technology, fissile material and missiles. However, they imply a phased process with reciprocal concessions," Mount said in an email. "It is not clear that the Trump administration will accept that kind of protracted program."

Analysts reacted with skepticism to Kim's previously announced plan to close down the test site at Punggye-ri, saying the northernmost tunnel had already become too unstable to use for underground detonations anyway following the country's sixth and most powerful test blast in September.

In his conversation with Moon, Kim denied that he would be merely clearing out damaged goods, saying the site also has two new tunnels that are larger than previous testing facilities, Yoon said.

Some analysts see Moon's agreement with Kim at the summit as a disappointment, citing the lack of references to verification and timeframes and also the absence of a definition on what would constitute a "complete" denuclearization of the peninsula.

But Patrick McEachern, a former State Department analyst now with the Washington-based Wilson Center, said it was still meaningful that Moon extracted a commitment from Kim to complete denuclearization, which marked a significant change from Kim's previous public demand to expand his arsenal of nuclear weapons in number and quality.

"The public conversation should now shift from speculation on whether North Korea would consider denuclearization to how South Korea and the United States can advance this denuclearization pledge in concrete steps in light of North Korea's reciprocal demands for concrete steps toward an eventual peace agreement," McEachern said in an email.

North Korea has invited the outside world to witness the dismantling of its nuclear facilities before. In June 2008, international broadcasters were allowed to air the demolition of a cooling tower at the Nyongbyon reactor site, a year after the North reached an agreement with the U.S. and four other nations to disable its nuclear facilities in return for an aid package worth about $400 million.

But the deal eventually collapsed after North Korea refused to accept U.S.-proposed verification methods, and the country went on to conduct its second nuclear test detonation in May 2009.

Yoon said Kim also revealed plans to sync its time zone with South Korea's. The Koreas had used the same time zone for decades before the North created its own "Pyongyang Time" in 2015 by setting the clock 30 minutes behind South Korea and Japan.

Yoon said the North's decision to return to Seoul's time zone was aimed at facilitating communication with South Korea and the U.S. </s> SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean security officials may visit North Korea ahead of the first summit since 2007 if more high-level talks are necessary, a Seoul official said on Tuesday, with the South hoping the North will reaffirm its commitment to denuclearize.

After meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in March, South Korea’s national security adviser and spy chief said Kim was committed to denuclearizing the Korean peninsula and had expressed a willingness to meet U.S. President Donald Trump.

The April 27 meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim is scheduled for the border village of Panmunjom.

“Even though our special envoys confirmed his denuclearization will, it is entirely different if the two leaders confirm it directly among themselves and put that into text,” Moon’s chief of staff, Im Jong-seok, told reporters.

“We expect the summit will confirm the denuclearization will (of North Korea)”.

Reclusive North Korea is pursuing nuclear and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council sanctions and has made no secret of its plans to develop a missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland.

It defends the programs as a necessary deterrent against a possible U.S. invasion, prompting bellicose rhetoric from both sides. The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea but denies any invasion plans.

But tensions have eased in recent months, coinciding with North Korea’s participation in the Winter Olympics held in the South in February.

Seoul and Pyongyang are discussing the wording of a possible joint statement to be released at the summit, Im said.

He added it will likely focus on issues of denuclearization and peace on the Korean peninsula, and an improvement in relations not only between the two Koreas but also with other countries including the United States.

Any joint statement is not expected to include economic cooperation with the North, Im said.

North Korea and the rich, democratic South are technically still at war because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. </s> South Korea is offering to play the role of mediator between the U.S. and North Korea after Pyongyang threatened to call off a summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.

A South Korean presidential Blue House official said on Thursday that it plans to “sufficiently convey (to the United States) what we’ve discerned about North Korea’s position and attitude… and sufficiently convey the United States’ position to North Korea,” according to Reuters.

The comments come after North Korea threatened to pull out of the upcoming summit between Trump and Kim after Pyongyang abruptly canceled a meeting with South Korean officials over denuclearization.

North Korea on Tuesday pointed to U.S.-South Korea military drills in cancelling the meeting with officials from Seoul.
South Korea states that North Korea has expressed a desire to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula without attaching preconditions such as withdrawing US troops.