North Korea Protests Continuation of US Sanctions

On Thursday, the North Korean government accused the United States of continuing to impose international sanctions despite actions indicating Pyongyang's goodwill, adding that if Washington continues its "outdated methods," there will be no progress in denuclearization. According to Reuters, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry stated in a broadcast on state television that North Korea is still willing to implement the agreements made during the historic meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un in Singapore. In that meeting, both sides committed to cooperate towards the denuclearization of North Korea, but neither has been able to reach an agreement on how to achieve this goal, with the US insisting that sanctions pressure must continue throughout the negotiations. The statement from the North Korean Foreign Ministry is a response to recent remarks by senior US diplomats emphasizing that North Korea must take further steps towards denuclearization. These comments followed a tense exchange between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho during their meeting last week in Singapore. On Thursday, the North Korean Foreign Ministry stated that the country has halted missile and nuclear tests and dismantled its "nuclear test facilities," yet the US continues to emphasize that "denuclearization is a priority." The statement added that North Korea, in a goodwill gesture aimed at breaking the atmosphere of distrust between the two countries, has returned the remains of several American soldiers killed in the Korean War to the US. In another part of the statement, it was said: "Nevertheless, the US government has responded to our actions by promoting international sanctions and exerting pressure on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The US government is seeking a pretext to escalate sanctions." The North Korean Foreign Ministry's statement continues: "As long as the US government ignores even the simplest negotiation requirements and resorts to outdated methods that previous administrations have employed and all have failed, no progress can be expected in the implementation of the joint statement of the two countries, including denuclearization." Reuters notes that the White House and the US State Department declined to comment on the matter. North Korea also accused an unnamed senior US official of acting "against Donald Trump's wishes by making baseless accusations against us and making desperate attempts to escalate international sanctions and pressure on North Korea." On Wednesday, Nikki Haley, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, stated: "The US is not willing to wait long for North Korea's actions towards denuclearization." During a trip to Colombia, she told reporters: "The ball is entirely in North Korea's court." John Bolton, National Security Advisor to Donald Trump, also stated recently that North Korea has not taken the necessary steps towards denuclearization. Ri Yong Ho, North Korea's Foreign Minister, visited Iran this week, where Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told him that after Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear agreement and resume sanctions against Iran, trust in the US government cannot be established.