North Korean negotiator headed to Washington; will meet Secy of State

Washington, January 17

Kim Yong-chol, North Korea’s lead negotiator in nuclear talks with the US, is expected to arrive in Washington on Thursday, according to informed sources.

After his arrival, Yong-chol is likely to meet Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and US special representative to North Korea Steve Biegun on Friday, CNN quoted informed sources as saying on Wednesday.

It remains unclear if he will visit the White House.

The dates for meetings between North Korea’s top negotiator and US officials in Washington have only been confirmed to CNN by the US side.

A source familiar with US-North Korea denuclearisation talks told CNN that the meetings would happen “by this weekend”. No firm details have been publicly announced yet.

“A lot of positive things are happening. He (Trump) and Chairman Kim (Jong-un) have established a good relationship, and conversations between the United States and North Korea continue,” a White House spokesperson told CNN.

“We are working to make progress on our goal of achieving the final, fully verified denuclearisation of North Korea, and the President looks forward to meeting Chairman Kim again at their second summit at a place and time yet to be determined.”

The location and the date of the second summit are expected to be discussed during the meeting in Washington.

Yong-chol last came to the US in June 2018.

He visited New York and met Pompeo before travelling to Washington, where he delivered a letter from Kim Jong-un to Trump in the Oval Office. IANS