WASHINGTON: The US has an « obligation » to pursue a diplomatic solution with North Korea, and there is a « real opportunity » for progress, Secretary of State…
WASHINGTON: The US has an « obligation » to pursue a diplomatic solution with North Korea, and there is a « real opportunity » for progress, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in an interview broadcast Sunday.
« We have an obligation to engage in diplomatic discourse to try and find a peaceful solution so that Americans aren’t held at risk by Kim Jong Un and his nuclear arsenal, » Pompeo told ABC’s « This Week. »
America’s top diplomat also said he and North Korean leader Kim held in-depth talks about a denuclearization « mechanism » when they met over Easter weekend.
« We talked a great deal about what it might look like, what this complete, verifiable, irreversible mechanism might look like, » Pompeo said, according to a transcript released by ABC.
Pompeo told journalists on Sunday that he believes Kim is looking for « concrete » actions.
« I’m confident that Kim Jong Un is looking for more than a piece of paper, » Pompeo said during a Middle East trip.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton said Libya’s decision to give up its nuclear program through diplomacy was a « model » for efforts to get North Korea to do likewise.
« We have very much in mind the Libya model from 2003,2004, » Bolton told Fox News Sunday when asked if North Korea would have to fully give up its nuclear weapons, fuel and missiles before the US makes concessions.
