North Korean officials have told their US counterparts that Kim Jong Un is ready to discuss denuclearisation, an assurance that could pave the way for a meeting with President Donald Trump, reports said Sunday.

It is the first time the offer was made directly to Washington, after it was previously conveyed through South Korean national security adviser Chung Eui-yong.

But Pyongyang has not followed up with Washington since, which the Journal suggested had made US officials nervous that Seoul overstated the North’s willingness to negotiate over its own nuclear arsenal.

No specifics have yet emerged concerning the date or venue of the proposed summit.