Washington DC, May 29: The US state department spokesperson has on Tuesday said entire weapons of North Korea of mass destruction programme violates the United Nations security council (UNSC) resolution.
US state department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus told reporters: “I think the entire North Korean WMD program, it’s in conflict with the U.N. Security Council resolutions. But what the U.S. is focused on here … is in trying to negotiate a peaceful end to the North Korean WMD program.”
According to Reuters news reports, Ortagus remarks came as she had been frequently asked to make United States position clear after President Donald Trump contradicted US national security advisor John Bolton over whether North Korea’s test and launches, which took this month, had violated the UN resolutions or not.
On Saturday, Bolton has said there was “no doubt” the tests had violated the UN treaty as the launches included some short-range ballistic missiles too.
Moreover, Ortagus has said the department was yet to publicly share its assessment on whether North Korean launches had involved any ballistic missiles test.
The Pentagon, however, on May 9 stated launches carried out by Pyongyang on that day consisted of multiple ballistic missiles tests.
During his visit to Japan, the US president said, “My people think it could have been a violation … I view it differently,” adding North Korean leader Kim Jong-un perhaps wanted “to get attention.
He stressed there had been “no nuclear tests, no ballistic missiles going out, no long-range missiles going out”, adding one day an agreement could be reached with North Korea to end its ballistic missiles and nuclear programme.
When asked whether US secretary of state Mike Pompeo agreed with the president or Bolton, Ortagus said: “I don’t think it was lost on any of us that the launches were an attempt to send a message to the administration.”
She added the US wanted to resume denuclearization talks with Pyongyang. She said, “That’s our focus here.”