President Joe Biden’s administration has reached out to North Korea but the regime has yet to respond, White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed Monday.
Psaki did not detail exactly when the administration first attempted to reach out to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Former President Donald Trump made great efforts to meet and negotiate with North Korea, though the results from the meets were unclear. Reuters first reported Biden’s outreach attempt Saturday.
“I can confirm that we have reached out,” Psaki said, clarifying that no response has come. “This follows over a year without active dialogue with North Korea, despite multiple attempts by the U.S. to engage.” (RELATED: North Korea Ignores Biden Administration’s Multiple Communication Requests)
Biden administration has reached out to North Korea to begin dialogue, @PressSec says. “To date we have not received any response,” she says.
— Courtney Subramanian (@cmsub) March 15, 2021
The U.S. has long had tensions with North Korea over its attempts to develop ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons. Psaki said the U.S. has reached out through multiple channels and the attempts are ongoing.
Secretary of State Tony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan are set to meet with their counterparts in Japan and South Korea in the coming days. The pair is also meeting with Chinese officials in Anchorage, Alaska, early this week. Psaki said it was important that the Biden administration’s first in-person meeting with Chinese officials take place on American soil.