Visits To South Korea And Japan, President Biden Considers Visiting The Korean Demilitarized Zone

Joe Biden visited the Korean DMZ while still serving as Vice President of the United States. (Wikimedia Commons/MC2 Chris Church)

JAKARTA - United States President Joe Biden is considering a trip to the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), during a visit to Asia later this month, according to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.

President Biden is expected to visit South Korea and Japan from May 20-24 and hold talks with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts.

Psaki said the White House was still finalizing the details of a scheduled visit to Asia. But a trip to the heavily fortified DMZ that separates the two Koreas is a step taken by many officials visiting the region.

Several former US Presidents, including Joe Biden himself before becoming president, have visited the DMZ. But former President Donald Trump became the first person to meet the North Korean leader there when he held a third summit with Kim Jong-un in June 2019 as part of his failed attempt to persuade him to give up his nuclear and missile programs.

The DMZ is often described as the world's last Cold War frontier, having existed since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

Psaki reiterated the US assessment that North Korea could be ready to carry out its seventh nuclear test as early as this month. North Korea has not tested a nuclear bomb since 2017, but resumed testing of intercontinental ballistic missiles this year.

"We are sharing this information with allies and partners, and are coordinating closely with them," Psaki said.

North Korea recently stepped up weapons tests and resumed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launches this year for the first time since 2017.

US and South Korean officials have said for weeks there were signs of new construction at Punggye-ri, North Korea's only known nuclear test site, with Pyongyang being able to test another bomb soon.

Yesterday, North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, South Korea and Japan said, in their latest test aimed at advancing its weapons program, shortly after the country reported its first COVID-19 outbreak.

While condemning the latest launch, the US State Department said it remained committed to a diplomatic approach with North Korea, reiterating calls for Pyongyang to return to dialogue.