The UN Security Council will meet on Wednesday, at the request of the United States, over missile launches by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the possibility of an "escalatory" provocation after Pyongyang conducted what it said a key test at a satellite launch site.
The move comes amid growing tensions and stalled talks between the United States and the DPRK that Washington hopes will lead to Pyongyang giving up its nuclear and missile programs. DRPK's leader Kim Jong Un has given the U.S. president until the end of the year to offer concessions.
The United States, which is president of the UN Security Council for December, decided to convene a meeting on Wednesday that will focus on the threat of escalation by the DPRK, diplomats said.
A U.S. official said earlier on Monday there would be "a comprehensive update on recent developments on the Korean Peninsula, including recent missile launches and the possibility of an escalatory DPRK provocation."
The DPRK has been subject to UN sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missiles and nuclear programs.
DPRK's envoy to the UN Kim Song said on Saturday that denuclearization was off the negotiating table and lengthy talks with Washington were not needed. On Sunday, Pyongyang announced it had carried out a "successful test of great significance" at its Sohae satellite launch site.
Insults back
After the announcement, Trump warned again that Kim risks losing "everything" if he resumes hostility and that the DPRK must denuclearize.
He told reporters that Kim has "too much to lose, everything actually, if he acts in a hostile way" and said he would be "surprised if North Korea (DPRK) acted hostilely."
In a rare personal attack on Trump since the start of diplomatic interactions, Kim Yong Chol, a former DPRK nuclear negotiator, called the U.S. president a "heedless and erratic old man" and condemned his "odd words and expression."
Kim Yong Chol (C) leads a DPRK delegation to the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games' closing ceremony in Paju, Republic of Korea, February 25, 2018. /VCG Photo
If Trump is not "astonished" by the DPRK's response, "We will be irritated," Kim said in a statement quoted by the official Korean Central News Agency.
Kim and Trump have met three times since June 2018, their first meeting was held in Singapore. Although Trump described Kim a friend and said comparative calm has been achieved since 2017, when fears were growing of all-out war, no progress toward a deal has been made.
The two countries failed to reach an agreement on the steps of denuclearization.
The DPRK is seeking a comprehensive deal that includes sanctions relief, while Washington insists on a full and complete denuclearization.
(With input from Reuters, AFP)
(Cover: This undated picture released from the Korean Central News Agency on November 25, 2019, shows DPRK's leader Kim Jong Un inspecting Changrin Islet defense detachment on the western front. /VCG Photo)