North Korea, U.S. working to implement pledges made in June 12 Joint Statement
- 6 years ago
After the Singapore summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on June 12th... Mr. Trump had hinted that follow-up meetings would start very soon,... as soon as the week after.
But it seems the details of those meetings still remain unclear.
Lee Ji-won has more.
Both North Korea and the United States are working to implement their Joint Statement, signed on June 12th during their leaders' first ever summit in Singapore.
President Trump suspended an annual joint military exercise with South Korea, namely Ulchi Freedom Guardian slated for August,... and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is due to return the remains of American soldiers killed in the Korean War.
While the dates have not been announced,... U.S. Forces Korea confirmed over the weekend that some one hundred temporary wooden caskets have been sent to the border village of Panmunjom and an additional 158 metal coffins have been moved to Osan Air Base in Gyeonggi-do Province.
And with President Trump praising Kim Jong-un as a "smart, tough guy" and touting the tremendous potential North Korea has to become a prosperous place during a recent speech in Nevada, the atmosphere between the two sides remains outwardly positive.
But the question remains,... when will the high-level meetings for follow-up measures to the Joint Statement take place?
There has been mounting speculation U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo may visit Pyongyang when the remains of the American soldiers are likely returned this week,... just as he brought home three American detainees last month.
And during his visit, Pompeo could hold talks with North Korean officials on the specific timeline for North Korea's denuclearization, a security guarantee as well as the normalization of their ties.
But according to the South Korean daily Joongang Ilbo last week, citing multiple foreign affairs sources, Pyongyang has yet to confirm the date for talks or the list of delegates.
With Pompeo's North Korean counterpart at the talks yet to be announced, there's only speculation at the moment.
It's assumed it would either be the North's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho or Vice Chairman of the ruling Workers' Party Central Committee, Kim Yong-chol, who worked closely with Pompeo to finalize the North Korea-U.S. summit and himself visited the White House a few weeks ago.
Lee Ji-won Arirang News.
But it seems the details of those meetings still remain unclear.
Lee Ji-won has more.
Both North Korea and the United States are working to implement their Joint Statement, signed on June 12th during their leaders' first ever summit in Singapore.
President Trump suspended an annual joint military exercise with South Korea, namely Ulchi Freedom Guardian slated for August,... and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is due to return the remains of American soldiers killed in the Korean War.
While the dates have not been announced,... U.S. Forces Korea confirmed over the weekend that some one hundred temporary wooden caskets have been sent to the border village of Panmunjom and an additional 158 metal coffins have been moved to Osan Air Base in Gyeonggi-do Province.
And with President Trump praising Kim Jong-un as a "smart, tough guy" and touting the tremendous potential North Korea has to become a prosperous place during a recent speech in Nevada, the atmosphere between the two sides remains outwardly positive.
But the question remains,... when will the high-level meetings for follow-up measures to the Joint Statement take place?
There has been mounting speculation U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo may visit Pyongyang when the remains of the American soldiers are likely returned this week,... just as he brought home three American detainees last month.
And during his visit, Pompeo could hold talks with North Korean officials on the specific timeline for North Korea's denuclearization, a security guarantee as well as the normalization of their ties.
But according to the South Korean daily Joongang Ilbo last week, citing multiple foreign affairs sources, Pyongyang has yet to confirm the date for talks or the list of delegates.
With Pompeo's North Korean counterpart at the talks yet to be announced, there's only speculation at the moment.
It's assumed it would either be the North's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho or Vice Chairman of the ruling Workers' Party Central Committee, Kim Yong-chol, who worked closely with Pompeo to finalize the North Korea-U.S. summit and himself visited the White House a few weeks ago.
Lee Ji-won Arirang News.