Biden Ready To Meet Kim Jong Un To Discuss Denuclearization

JAKARTA - US President Joe Biden is ready to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un without preconditions to discuss denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, said White House national security spokesman John Kirby.

"They (North Korea) have not responded positively to the offer, but the offer is still being negotiated. We are willing to sit down and negotiate without preconditions," Kirby said in an interview with Kyodo News as reported by ANTARA, Friday, August 18.

The statement was made by Kirby the day before Biden was set to host a trilateral summit with leaders of Japan and South Korea who would discuss issues, particularly North Korea's rapid development of nuclear and missile capabilities.

Unlike his predecessor Donald Trump, who met Kim three times in person, the Biden administration has never had a high-level meeting with North Korea and has only involved its officials to discuss denuclearization.

Kirby did not mention when the meeting offer with Kim was made. He only said that the Biden administration was stepping up its efforts to reach North Korea.

Regarding Pyongyang's lack of response to the Biden administration, Kirby said Biden was not too concerned about that.

"We have to make sure that we are ready in every way to maintain our national security, and the interests of our allies Korea and Japan," Kirby said.

"That means we have to bring out more capabilities in the region we have, and we will definitely consider doing it again in the future if necessary."

South Korean intelligence agencies have detected signs that North Korea is preparing to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile to coincide with the US-Japanese summit-South Korea, a South Korean lawmaker said Thursday.

"There may be some kind of provocative action, but we don't know what it's like. After all, it's useless for us to worry too much about that."

In a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at Camp David in Maryland, the three of them will agree to improve their deterrence in response to North Korea's aggression and China's growing military force, according to senior officials involved in preparations for the summit.