Work not in line with pledge to denuclearise: Pompeo
SINGAPORE: Less than two months after a landmark United StatesNorth Korea summit in Singapore, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew back to the city state yesterday and said North Korea’s continued work on weapons programmes was inconsistent with its leader’s commitment to denuclearise.
Pompeo was asked about his statement in the US Senate last month that North Korea was continuing to make bomb fuel and reports that North Korea, led by Kim JongUn, was building new missiles.
‘‘Chairman Kim made a commitment to denuclearise,’’ Pompeo told reporters. ‘‘The world demanded that they [North Korea] do so in the UN Security Council resolutions. To the extent they are behaving in a manner inconsistent with that, they are a) in violation of one or both the UN Security Council resolutions and b) we can see we still have a ways to go to achieve the ultimate outcome we’re look ing for.’’
Pompeo thanked ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) for their efforts in strictly enforcing sanctions on North Korea.
In a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump in Singapore on June 12, Kim committed in a broad statement to work towards denuclearisation, but Pyongyang has not said how it might go about this.
Pompeo told a Senate committee hearing on July 25 North Korea was continuing to produce fuel for nuclear bombs despite its pledge.
On Tuesday, a senior US official said US spy satellites had detected renewed activity at the North Korean factory that produced the country’s first intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the US.
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday North Korea appeared to be building one or two new liquidfuelled intercontinental ballistic missiles at the research facility, citing unidentified officials.
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho is also in Singapore and will attend the same regional meeting as Pompeo tonight, but the State Department has not said whether the two will meet.
The White House said yesterday Trump had received a letter from Kim and had responded with a note that should be delivered shortly. It said no second meeting was planned. — Reuters