Panama Rejects US Claims of Free Canal Passages for Government Vessels
Panama has denied claims made by the US State Department that American government vessels can now transit the Panama Canal without paying fees
North Korea announced today that the US has proposed blocked talks on denuclearization to be resumed in December as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's deadline for US President Donald Trump's government to propose a mutually acceptable deal to save talks is approaching. BGNES reported.
In a statement released by state media, North Korean envoy to the talks Kim Myong-gil did not give a clear answer on whether Pyongyang would accept US proposals.
“If the negotiated solution of issues is possible, we are ready to meet with the U.S. at any place and any time,” Mr. Kim said. But he added that North Korea had “no willingness to have such negotiations” if the United States merely planned to stall, as he said Mr. Biegun’s team had done in Stockholm, The New York Times reported. The diplomat said Pyongyang did not want to negotiate on minor issues, such as possible US proposals to declare a formal end to the 1950-1953 Korean War that ended with a ceasefire rather than a peace treaty or the establishment of bureaus for liaison between the parties.
Kim Yong Chol said he hoped the comments “reflected the intention” of Trump, calling them “part of positive efforts” on the U.S. side to “preserve” negotiations.
“However, if this ends up with our naive interpretation and the hostile provocation is committed eventually to incite us, we will be compelled to answer with shocking punishment that would be difficult for the U.S. to cope with,” he said, reported by the Japan Times.
Denuclearization talks have been blocked after the failure of the Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump summit in Vietnam, on which the United States refused to fulfil North Korean demands for a significant lift in sanctions in exchange for Pyongyang's partial renunciation of its nuclear potential, the AP recalls.
Last month, talks at a working level in Sweden failed because, according to Pyongyang, the "outdated position and approach" of the United States, the agency said.
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