South Korean envoys will bring a message to the United States from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when they meet in Washington later this week.
The envoys were given the undisclosed message on Monday when meeting Kim in talks in Pyongyang.
Agreement also was reached that the leaders of South and North Korea will meet at a summit in April for the first time in more than a decade, and the first since Kim took power, according to the news agency Yonhap.
“We cannot reveal everything to the media, but we do have additional views of North Korea we will relay to the United States when we visit the U.S.,” said South Korea’s head of national security Chung Eui-yong.
However, Chung said that Kim clearly expressed his country’s willingness to talk with Washington and to suspend weapons testing while this happens.
However, there has been no comment from Pyongyang itself and previous American negotiations with North Korea failed to solve the crisis. President Donald Trump responded cautiously to the news on Twittter:
Possible progress being made in talks with North Korea. For the first time in many years, a serious effort is being made by all parties concerned. The World is watching and waiting! May be false hope, but the U.S. is ready to go hard in either direction!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 6, 2018
What’s the secret message?
It appears both Koreas are trying to continue momentum on eased tensions after the Seoul Winter Olympics, during which the two countries marched together under one flag.
However, critics point out that Pyongyang may simply be trying to buy time to develop its weapons programs or that Kim is only trying to soften the impact of sanctions without making real concessions.
Source: News Agencies
