The North Korean regime and the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden have made their opening gambits in a process that could pave the way for a return to denuclearization talks — but don’t expect much in the way of quick progress.
Last week, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader poured cold water on the possibility of a quick return to nuclear talks with the United States, delivering a terse statement exactly 100 words long warning Washington that it faced “disappointment” if it believed engagement was a possibility.
This was echoed just a day later by the North’s foreign minister, who said Pyongyang was “not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S.” after the recently appointed U.S. envoy to the country, Sung Kim, said he was willing to meet the North Koreans “anywhere, anytime.”