LOC11:32
08:32 GMT
TOKYO, July 7 (KUNA) -- North Korea on Tuesday reiterated that it has no intention to resume dialogue with the US, ahead of Washington's top nuclear envoy's visit to Seoul amid stalled nuclear talks.
In a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, director-general of the Department of US Affairs of North Korea's Foreign Ministry Kwon Jong-gun said "Explicitly speaking once again, we have no intention to sit face to face with the US,"
"It is just the time for it to stop meddling in others' affairs but it seems there is no cure or prescription for its bad habit," Kwon criticized South Korean's efforts to help improve ties between Pyongyang and Washington. Kwonآ’s statement came hours before US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun visits Seoul for discussions on the stalled nuclear talks with Pyongyang.
On Saturday, North Korea's First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui said in a statement that her country feels no need to sit down with the US, accusing Washington of taking advantage of dialogue as a tool for grappling with its political crisis.
US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met three times since June 2018, and agreed that Washington would provide security guarantees to North Korea in return for complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
However, the denuclearization talks have been stalled since their no-deal summit in February last year in Hanoi. (end)
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