DIRECT TALKS WITH NORTH KOREA: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says he’s open to the U.S. negotiating directly with North Korea over its nuclear weapons, which would mark a shift in Washington’s diplomatic efforts. “Obviously that will be the way we would like to solve this,” he told NPR in an interview. “But North Korea has to decide they’re ready to talk to us about the right agenda and the right agenda is not simply stopping where they are for a few more months or a few more years and then resuming things. That’s been the agenda for the last 20 years.” The last round of talks began in 2003, known as the Six Party Talks, and North Korea walked away in 2009.
“MAJOR, MAJOR CONFLICT”: President Trump raised the prospect of war with North Korea over the issue in an interview with Reuters. “There is a chance that we could end up having a major, major conflict with North Korea. Absolutely,” adding that he’s exploring any number of options to get an agreement with the regime.
