US-North Korea denuclearization talks come to a dead end

Talks between the United States and North Korea in Sweden concluded with an abrupt end, said officials of both countries on Sunday. The talks were conducted to resume the denuclearization process which had been stopped since the collapse of the second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. North Korea's chief negotiator Kim Myong-Gil, said that after meeting with his US counterpart, Stephen Biegun, the talks broke down due to Washington's failure to come up with a new proposal.

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US-North Korea talks on a dead end

"The break-up of the negotiation without any outcome is totally due to the fact that the US would not give up their old viewpoint and attitude," Myong-Gil said.

Kim Myong-Gil expressed immense displeasure and stated that the talks have been suspended. He also said that urged the US to deliberate until the end of the year. In addition, he said that it is on the US whether to keep the possibilities of the dialogue alive or "forever close the door to dialogue". However, the US State Department also hit back and criticized North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-un.

"The early comments from the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) delegation do not reflect the content or the spirit of today's 8 1/2 hour discussion," State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement. "The US brought creative ideas and had good discussions with its DPRK counterparts," she said, adding that the US delegation also "previewed a number of new initiatives that would allow us to make progress" on each of the four main agreements reached at the first Trump-Kim summit in Singapore in June 2018.

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Meanwhile, in Stockholm Kim interacted with reporters and said that the negotiations failed to meet their expectations and ultimately broke up.

"Held at a crucial moment when the situation on the Korean peninsula stands at the crossroads of dialogue or confrontation."

South Korea raises concern

The summit was about North Korea committing to work towards a full-scale denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in exchange for some US security guarantees. Along with that, it also aimed at paving way for lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula by establishing new ties between two countries and repatriating the remains of American troops killed in the 1950-53 Korean War. Raising concerns over the failed talks, South Korea's Foreign Ministry also issued a statement and expressed hope for the dialogue to continue despite the setbacks it received. 

"There was no actual progress in the negotiations, but we assess that it is a start of the negotiations with the new North Korean delegation, and we expect the momentum of the dialogue to continue," it said.

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"We have been in close consultation with the US negotiation team before and after the negotiations. The government will work closely with the US to ensure that dialogue continues based on both sides' positions," the statement added.

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(With ANI Inputs)