Pompeo hopes talks with Kim in Pyongyang will lead to denuclearization

SEOUL (Reuters) – US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Sunday that he expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the hope that he will lead North Korea to give up a nuclear weapons program likely to threaten the United States.

Pompeo has published a photo of himself on his government's Tokyo government plane door on Twitter on Sunday with the following caption: "Next step, #Pyongyang, meet with President Kim and continue his work to fulfill the commitments made by @potus and his president, Kim the #singaporesummit. "

Pompeo, who was making his fourth visit to Pyongyang, said Friday on Twitter that he "would continue his efforts to create a path for the denuclearization of (North Korea)".

A State Department official was unable to immediately confirm the arrival of Pompeo in Pyongyang, where outside communications may be limited.

Pompeo went to Tokyo on Saturday and was expected in Seoul later on Sunday. He must also travel to Beijing before returning Monday to the United States.

Pompeo said en route to Asia that he aimed "to make sure we understand what each party is really trying to achieve." He also stated that he also hoped to agree on a "date and general venue" for a second summit between President Donald Trump and Kim, following their visit. first meeting in June.

During his meeting with Trump in Singapore on June 12, Kim pledged to work for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, but his actions since then have failed to meet Washington's demands for irreversible measures to abandon his arsenal.

Pompeo refused on his way to Asia to give details of his planned negotiations when he asked him if he would accept North Korean claims in view of an end-of-the-year declaration. the Korean War of 1950-53 or South Korea's suggestion that one should avoid getting out of the current stalemate. again for an inventory of North Korea's nuclear weapons.

Trump seemed to want a second summit with Kim, although recent North Korean statements have suggested that the two sides are far from reducing their differences.

Recently, Pompeo has angered North Korea by insisting that international sanctions must remain in force until it abandons its nuclear weapons. On Wednesday, he said that the UN General Assembly, meeting last week, unanimously supported this proposal, even though Russia and China "had ideas on how we could start thinking at a moment's notice. where it should be reduced. "

Pompeo's last trip to North Korea went wrong. He left Pyongyang in July to commend the progress made, but North Korea denounced him for having formulated "gangster-like demands". Pompeo did not meet Kim on this trip.

Last month, North Korea's Foreign Minister, Ri Yong Ho, told the United Nations that the continuation of sanctions deepened the North's mistrust of the United States and that it was impossible for Pyongyang unilaterally abandons nuclear weapons in such circumstances.

In Tokyo, Pompeo met with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and said he would closely coordinate talks with North Korea with Japan. He promised to raise the issue of abductions of Japanese citizens during his meetings in Pyongyang.