Posted on 07/08/2018 1:36:02 AM PDT by GonzoII
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday shrugged off North Korea’s accusation of the U.S. making “gangster-like” demands regarding denuclearization, saying he’d “go nuts” if he paid attention to everything the media reports.
In a trilateral news conference in Tokyo, accompanied by officials from Japan and South Korea, Pompeo reaffirmed the U.S. goal of complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, reiterating that his talks with North Korea last week were conducted in “good faith.”
When a reporter asked about North Korea’s Saturday comments, Pompeo didn’t seem too bothered.
“Look, people are going to make stray comments after meetings,” Pompeo said. “If I paid attention to what the press said, I’d go nuts, and I refuse to do that.”
“And so if those requests were ‘gangster-like,’” Pompeo added, “then the world is a gangster because there was a unanimous decision at the U.N. Security Council about what needs to be achieved.”
Pompeo said sanctions would remain in place against North Korea, and be enforced “with great vigor,” adding that progress alone does not change the sanctions.
“I am determined to achieve the commitment that President Trump made,” Pompeo said. “I’m counting on Chairman Kim to be determined to follow through on the commitment that he made.”
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Secretary of State Pompeo reports on the meeting in North Korea...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jw1tP2d9OZ4&t=4m13s
Bump!
These NK underlings getting snippy may indicate an internal move is in progress against Kim. There are entrenched interests in many quarters which cannot abide a peaceful resolution of this old conflict.
We’ve seen this pattern before from the Norks and they’re testing American resolve to stay the course.
We aren’t being bamboozled by a dictatorship and Pompeo isn’t a chump.
If the North Koreans backtrack on their complete denuclearization pledge, then it will be their loss.
A better future for them is possible only if they work with us to make it happen and belittling us won’t change it.
“nice little nation you got here Kim. Would be a shame if something happened to it”
Restart the carriers....
People have no idea how deep the internal struggle over denucluarization is among the NK generals. It is from this anti-denuke camp that these comments are originating.
Expect to see more firings of top military there. Kim is committed, but there is a real risk of a coup.
He gave great answers.
I figure the NORKS have to stomp their feet a little in order to save face at home. This does not worry me. I believe Trump convinced Rocket Boy that skyscrapers and tourist resorts would be more viable than rocket launchers and military installations.
I thought this would fail from the outset. Of course Trump was still smart to give it a try. And you’ve got to go into it with a positive outlook if you’re going to do it at all. But it seems pretty clear that NK is back to playing its old games.
Agree.
Exactly!
No evidence of that so far. I’d always thought denuclearization was preconditional.
Fake News. Snippiness for internal consumption.
Total de-nuk in progress. The sooner they are done, the sooner the good stuff starts happening for NK.
Well, it looks like war games are back on.
Don’t you miss the Obama days? /s
Picture a bride arguing with her father about her wedding. With every step, the father protests about the price.
"How much for the flowers? You don't need that many flowers, those are expensive. This Dress? HOW MUCH? That's insane! I don't care who designed-- is this for the wedding cake?? How many tiers do you need?! If it weren't for water buffaloes on your mother's side of the family we could have a smaller cake."
But in the end, the bride usually gets her way.
Why would he give away his nukes? He is nothing without them.
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