North Korea's missile tests are extremely destabilizing and dangerous, while Pyongyang has not responded to any of Washington's diplomatic initiatives, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said today.
First sanctions
The Biden administration on Wednesday imposed the first sanctions related to North Korea's weapons program, following a series of North Korean missile launches, including two last week.
It also asked the UN Security Council to impose more sanctions against Pyongyang, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Wednesday.
Willingness for talks
Blinken said the United States has made clear that it has no hostile intentions toward North Korea and is willing to engage in talks without preconditions.
"Unfortunately, not only was there no response to these initiatives, but the response we saw ... was new missile tests, which are extremely destabilizing. They are dangerous and go against a number of UN Security Council resolutions," Blinken told MSNBC.
Implications
"I think to some extent North Korea is trying to draw attention," he said, adding "it's been done in the past and will probably continue to do so."
The United States and its allies are focused on ensuring their protection and that there will be consequences for North Korea's missile activity, Blinken said.
Source: APM
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