US seeks peace as deadline looms on Christmas ‘gift’
SEOUL: President Donald Trump’s top envoy to North Korea countered Kim Jong Un’s threat of a Christmas provocation with a call for more nuclear talks to usher in a “season of peace.”
US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun on Monday urged Kim to return to negotiations, noting that the coming holiday was “one of the most sacred days on our calendar.” Biegun made the remarks during his first visit to Seoul since North Korea threatened to give Trump a “Christmas gift” to show its frustration with the US.
“We are fully aware of the strong potential for North Korea to conduct a major provocation in the days ahead,” Biegun told reporters. “Such action will be most unhelpful in achieving a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
Biegun’s comments came on the heels of North Korea’s claims of a second “crucial test” Saturday that it said had boosted its nuclear-deterrent capabilities. Such tests have put further pressure on the US to try to break the deadlock in negotiations between the two countries after workinglevel talks collapsed in October in Stockholm.
Kim is seeking greater U.S. concessions in return for his decision to suspend nuclear weapons tests and his agreement with Trump in Singapore to “work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.” Pyongyang threatened to take a “new path” if there was no progress in talks by the end of the year, following up earlier this month with its “Christmas gift” threat.
“The United States does not have a deadline; we have a goal - to fulfill the commitments the two leaders made during their historic summit in Singapore,” Biegun said. BLOOMBERG