The North Korean foreign minister, Ri Yong-ho, said his country had “reasons to distrust” the United States. He spoke at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday. Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
New York Times: ‘No Way’ North Korea Will Denuclearize Without U.S. Concessions
North Korea’s foreign minister said on Saturday that there was “no way we will denuclearize” without getting so-called trust-building concessions from the United States, an assertion that reflected a continuing divide over efforts to ease nuclear tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
“Without any trust in the United States, there will be no confidence in our national security, and under such circumstances there is no way we will unilaterally disarm ourselves first,” the North Korean minister, Ri Yong-ho, told the United Nations General Assembly.
The United States has called for North Korea to surrender all of its nuclear capabilities first, before other issues can be negotiated. The North insists it needs reciprocal concessions from the United States, including the lifting of crippling economic sanctions and an official declaration that the 1950-53 Korean War has ended.
Speaking to world leaders who had gathered for the General Assembly, Mr. Ri expressed a “firm determination to turn the Korean Peninsula into a land of peace” but said the American-backed sanctions were a “hostile policy.”
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WNU Editor: The only thing that the North Koreans have given-up has been a suspension of missile and nuclear testing. In my book the onus is on North Korea to provide trust-building measures, specifically to South Korea.
More News On The North Korean Foreign Minister Declaring That The Country Will Not Abandon Nuclear Weapons If It Cannot Get Trust-Building Concessions From The U.S.
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North Korea says there is 'no way' it will give up nuclear weapons without trust -- The Independent
North Korean foreign minister says country will never disarm nuclear weapons without trust in US -- FOX News
No unilateral disarmament while US prevents trust building with coercive methods – North Korea -- RT
