A top envoy from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived at the White House on Friday for a meeting with President Donald Trump – the first visit by such a high ranking official in at least 18 years.
Former North Korean spy chief Kim Yong Chol was greeted on the south side of the White House by Chief of Staff John Kelly before the pair walked into the White House. Yong Chol was sent to hand deliver a letter from Kim Jong Un during the meeting.
Additional footage of North Korean official arriving at White House to deliver letter from Kim Jong Un. pic.twitter.com/NJpQpoiQ5d
— Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) June 1, 2018
The letter from Mr. Kim was described as fairly basic, according to one foreign government official who was briefed on the contents. It expresses the North Korean leader’s interest in meeting without making any significant concessions or threats. The Kim lieutenant delivering the letter, Gen. Kim Yong Chol, who is under U.S. sanctions for his role in cyberattacks against American companies, is expected to remain in the U.S. until Saturday, the official said. –WSJ
The visit follows two days of meetings in New York between the North Korean envoy and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who made clear that the United States will require North Korea completely denuclearize.
“In my conversation w/chairman Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang & today with vice chairman Kim young Chol, I have been clear that Trump & the U.S. objective is consistent & well known. The complete, verifiable & irreversible denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.” -Pompeo #NorthKorea pic.twitter.com/3NycGijcIw
— Nick Short 🇺🇸 (@PoliticalShort) May 31, 2018
In comments to reporters Thursday before boarding Air Force One for a trip to meet with families affected by a school shooting earlier this month, President Trump said that talks between US and North Korean diplomats were going “very well.”
The White House visit comes on the heels of a dramatic turn of events after President Trump abruptly canceled a summit planned for last week, citing anger and hostility from North Korea.
The North Korean government immediately responded. In a statement issued by state-run Korean Central News Agency, citing Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan, North Korea announced it was willing to sit with the U.S. “whenever, however” through any method to try to resolve the outstanding issues.
Gwan said that whereas President Trump’s announcement to one-sidedly cancel the planned summit is unexpected and very regrettable, “North Korea’s goal and will to do everything for peace and stability of the Korean peninsula and mankind remains unchanged, and we are always willing to give time and opportunity to the US side with a big and open mind,” according to the statement. He added that “We express our intent that there is a willingness to sit at any time, in any way to resolve issues” and noted that President Trump’s decision to cancel the summit is “not what the world wants” and the summit is necessary to resolve the current hostile bilateral relationship.
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