Days after North Korea launched its first underwater ballistic missile in two years, a senior US diplomat has urged the country to refrain from additional missile tests and resume nuclear diplomacy.
On Sunday, US envoy to North Korea Sung Kim spoke after meeting with South Korean officials to discuss North Korea’s recent missile tests, while nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang remain stalled.
“We call on the DPRK to stop these provocations and other destabilizing activities and instead engage in dialogue,” Kim told reporters, referring to North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“We stand ready to meet with the DPRK without any preconditions and we have made it clear that the United States has no hostile intentions towards the DPRK,” he said.
Last Tuesday, North Korea fired a newly developed ballistic missile from a submarine in its fifth round of weapons tests in recent weeks. South Korean officials said the submarine-launched missile appeared to be in an early stage of development.
It is the North’s first underwater launch test since October 2019, and the most high-profile since President Joe Biden took office in January. Missiles fired from submarines are difficult to detect in advance and would give North Korea a secondary, counter-attack capability.
Tuesday’s launch violates several UN Security Council resolutions that ban any activity by North Korea in the field of ballistic missiles.
Kim said the test poses a threat to the international community and is “concerning and counterproductive” to efforts to promote peace on the Korean peninsula.
Kim’s South Korean counterpart, Noh Kyu-duk, said the two discussed Seoul’s push for a symbolic declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War as a way to bring about peace. Noh said he and Kim reaffirmed that issues of concern to North Korea could be discussed once talks resume.
According to Association Press, US-led talks on ending North Korea’s nuclear program have been largely stalled since early 2019, when a summit between then-President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un over US-led sanctions on North Korea was broken due to controversies.
The Biden administration has repeatedly said it is ready to meet with North Korea “anywhere and at any time” without any preconditions. But North Korea says a return to talks is on condition that the US abandon the hostile policy it calls a clear reference to sanctions and regular military exercises between Washington and Seoul.
Before the submarine missile launch, North Korea also tested several other new weapon systems over six weeks, including its longest-range cruise missile and a hypersonic missile currently under development.
Those weapons potentially put American allies South Korea and Japan within striking range. Some experts say North Korea may also test a missile in the coming weeks that could reach the US homeland to maximize its pressure campaign on the United States.
