Just days after President Joe Biden announced sanctions on North Korea over its human rights record, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US seeks "serious and sustained diplomacy" with the country.
The ultimate goal of denuclearizing the Korean peninsula is still being pursued by the US, according to deputy secretary of state Antony Blinken.
He talked about how the US wants to boost security in the Pacific region and highlighted the capabilities of North Korea.
He said that they would work with allies and partners to address the threat posed by the DPRK's nuclear programs.
He recalled a November meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi when Biden advocated that China and the US should not get into a conflict.
We take that responsibility very seriously. The failure to do so would be catastrophic for all of us.
He said that the US has helped to keep the peace in the region for a long time.
"We don't want conflict in the Pacific," he said.
There are threats evolving. "Our security approach has to evolve with it." "We will seek closer civilian security cooperation, tackle challenges ranging from violent extremism to illegal fishing to human trafficking."
The US was open to engaging diplomatically with North Korea, but it was up to Kim's regime to decide if they wanted to respond, according to Tony Blinken in May.
"I hope that North Korea will take the opportunity to engage diplomatically, and to see if there are ways to move forward toward the objective of the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," he said at the time.
Both the US and North Korea have blamed each other for creating instability in the Korean peninsula, with the US accusing the North of being the root cause of tensions in the region.
