United States urged North Korea to Stop Missile Tests & Start Talks

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On Sunday, a senior US diplomat urged North Korea to refrain from additional missile tests and resume nuclear diplomacy. The statement came days after the North fired off its first underwater-launched ballistic missile in two years. The US envoy on North Korea, Sung Kim spoke after meeting with South Korean officials to discuss North Korea’s recent missile tests. However, nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang remain stalled. Kim said, “We call on the DPRK to cease these provocations and other destabilizing activities, and instead, engage in dialogue. We remain ready to meet with the DPRK without preconditions and we have made clear that the United States harbors no hostile intent towards the DPRK”. Point to be noted that North Korea fired a newly developed ballistic missile last Tuesday from a submarine in its 5^th round of weapons tests in recent weeks.

Moreover, South Korean officials said the submarine-fired missile appeared to be in an early stage of development. It marks the North’s first underwater-launched test since October 2019, and the most high-profile one since US President took office in January. Missiles fired from submarines are harder to detect in advance and would provide North Korea with a secondary, retaliatory attack capability. Tuesday’s launch violates multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions that ban any activity by North Korea in the area 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 had an in-depth discussion on Seoul’s push for a symbolic declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War as a way to bring peace.

Noh Kyu-duk said he and Kim also reaffirmed that North Korea’s issues of concern can be discussed after resuming the talks. The US-led talks on ending North Korea’s nuclear program have been largely stalled since early 2019. It was the time when a summit between then-President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un collapsed due to disputes over US-led sanctions on North Korea. The Biden administration has repeatedly said it’s ready to meet North Korea anywhere and at any time without preconditions. But North Korea says a return to talks is conditional on the US dropping what it calls hostile policy (an apparent reference to the sanctions and regular military drills between Washington and Seoul). North Korea had also tested several other new weapons systems over a six-week period before the submarine missile launch, including its longest-range cruise missile and a hypersonic missile currently under development.