North Korea says it may be willing to discuss "denuclearization" with the United States if unspecified "threats and hurdles" to its security and development are addressed.
The comments Monday by North Korea's Foreign Ministry come days ahead of what U.S. officials hope is the start of long-delayed working level nuclear talks with Pyongyang.
North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui a week ago said the North was willing to hold “comprehensive discussions” with U.S. officials by the end of the month.
In a statement carried Monday by the Korean Central News Agency, North Korea's Foreign Ministry appeared to move back the date of the possible talks, mentioning they are “expected to be held in a few weeks.”
“The discussion of denuclearization may be possible when threats and hurdles endangering our system security and obstructing our development are clearly removed beyond all doubt,” the statement said.
The comments, attributed to the director general of the North Korean Foreign Ministry’s Department of U.S. Affairs, called the upcoming talks “decisive.”
“Whether the DPRK-U.S. negotiations will be a window for chance or an occasion to precipitate crisis is entirely up to the U.S.,” the statement said, using an abbreviation for North Korea’s official name.
North Korea has called for the U.S. to come to the table with a “new way of calculation,” giving an end-of-year deadline after which it may increase provocations.
Source : VOA