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‘Still risks’ that N.Korean peace won’t happen: Pompeo
BEIJING, June 14, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
warned Thursday that there are “still risks” that could derail efforts to
bring peace to the Korean peninsula following Donald Trump’s summit with
North Korea’s leader.
“We truly believe that we have a path forward after so many years that can
bring peace,” Pompeo told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as he briefed
officials in Beijing about the landmark talks.
“There are still risks that we won’t achieve that but I truly do believe
that the world set the conditions properly” at the summit, he said, after
Trump said his deal with Kim Jong Un had ended the North Korean nuclear
threat.
Pompeo said he appreciated everything done by China, North Korea’s sole
major ally, to prepare the ground for Tuesday’s summit.
Trump repeatedly urged Beijing to enforce UN sanctions on North Korea to
pressure the reclusive country, whose economy relies heavily on China to
survive.
“There is still more work to be done by China and the United States,”
Pompeo said.
Wang said the summit “moved the peninsula’s nuclear issue into the right
track of peace and negotiation in line with all parties including the US and
China as well as the hopes of international society”.
“It helps to promote and realise the denuclearisation of the peninsula and
helps to provide the peninsula and the region real and lasting peace,” Wang
added.
Turning to US-China relations, Wang said “cooperation far outweighs
differences and competition” between the world’s two largest economies.
His comments come as weeks of negotiations between Beijing and Washington
show no signs of a breakthrough, with Trump due Friday to decide on whether
to impose tariffs on billions of dollars worth of Chinese imports.
BSS/AFP/ARS/1755 hrs