Kim says he wants more talks with U.S.
But North Korean leader warns Washington about ‘sanctions and pressure’
SEOUL, REPUBLIC OF KOREA— North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Tuesday he hopes to extend his high-stakes nuclear summitry with U.S. President Donald Trump into 2019, but also warns Washington not to test North Koreans’ patience.
During his televised New Year’s speech, Kim said he’s ready to meet with Trump at any time to produce an outcome “welcomed by the international community.”
However, he said the North will be forced to take a different path if the U.S. “continues to break its promises and misjudges the patience of our people by unilaterally demanding certain things and pushes ahead with sanctions and pressure.”
Kim also said the U.S. should continue to halt its joint military exercises with ally South Korea and not deploy strategic military assets to the South. He also made a nationalistic call urging for stronger inter-Korean co-operation and said the North is ready to resume operations at a jointly run factory park in the North Korean border town of Kaesong and restart South Korean tours to the North’s Diamond Mountain resort. Neither of those is possible for South Korea unless sanctions are removed.
Some analysts say North Korea has been trying to drive a wedge between Washington and Seoul while putting the larger burden of action on the U.S. Pyongyang over the past months has accused Washington of failing to take corresponding measures following the North’s unilateral dismantlement of a nuclear testing ground and suspension of nuclear and long-range missile tests.