President Obama said Sunday that he does not take seriously North Korea’s “overtures” to stop its nuclear weapons program.
He was responded to a report this weekend that a top North Korean official said his country would cease nuclear tests if the United States suspends its annual military exercises with South Korea.
Speaking at a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a visit to the European state, Obama said North Korea needs to do a better job at showing the world it is ready to put aside “provocative behaviors” before the international community allows international talks about reducing tensions in the region.
“We don’t take seriously a promise to simply halt until the next time they decide to do a test, these kinds of activities,” Obama said. “What we’ve said consistently dating back to the Six Party Talks, is that if North Korea shows seriousness in denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, then we will be prepared to enter into serious conversations with them about reducing tensions and our approach to protecting our allies in the region.”
The president said such an offer in the wake of a missile test this weekend is hardly grounds for opening the door to negotiations.
“They’re going to have to do better than that,” Obama said. “And until they do, we’re going to continue to emphasize our work with the Republic of Korea and Japan and our missile defense mechanisms to assure we’re keeping … our allies safe.
According to an Associated Press report published Saturday, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong said his country would cease its nuclear tests if the U.S. suspends its annual military exercises with South Korea. He also said international economic sanctions will not convince convince the country to back down.
His comments came hours after North Korea reportedly test-fired a ballistic missile from a submarine off the coast of the Korean peninsula. Though South Korean officials said the missile flew only about 19 miles, Obama cautioned that every time the Pyongyang runs these tests, they get closer to a dangerous milestone.
“North Korea continues to engage in provocative behavior,” Obama said. “That they have been actively pursuing a nuclear program, an ability to launch nuclear weapons, and although more often than not they fail in many of these tests, they gain knowledge each time they engage in these tests.”
