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Joe Biden trying to meet North Korea’s Kim Jong-un ‘without preconditions’, senior White House official says
- Pyongyang has not responded positively to the offer but it’s ‘still on the table’, says national security spokesman John Kirby
- The US president is set to host a summit with Japan and South Korea, at which North Korea’s nuclear and missile programme will be a major agenda item
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US President Joe Biden is willing to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un “without preconditions” to discuss the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, a senior White House official said on Thursday.
“They have not responded positively to that offer, but it’s still on the table. We are willing to sit down and negotiate without preconditions,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said in an interview.
Kirby made the remarks a day before Biden is set to host a trilateral summit with the leaders of Japan and South Korea, at which North Korea’s rapid development of nuclear and missile capabilities will be a major agenda item.
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Unlike his predecessor Donald Trump, who met Kim in person three times, Biden’s administration has sought to make progress toward denuclearisation through multiple channels involving officials, but not at the top level.
The offer of a top-level meeting, disclosed by Kirby without specifying when the offer was made, suggests the Biden administration is stepping up efforts to reach out to North Korea.
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