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'Small Weapons': Trump Downplays DPRK Threat, Confident Kim 'Will Keep Promise'

On Sunday US President Donald Trump downplayed the recent missile launches made by Pyongyang, saying that the tests have "disturbed some of my people". The statement came only a day after US National Security Adviser John Bolton slammed North Korean actions as a violation of United Nations resolutions.
Sputnik

Trump, who is currently on an official visit to Japan, argued on Twitter that he has confidence that North Korea leader Kim Jong Un would keep the promise he allegedly made earlier to Trump.

Earlier in May, North Korea tested multiple ballistic missiles from a location in the country's northwest. They flew eastward, over Japan, to distances in excess of 186 miles. Numerous countries condemned the missile tests, saying that Pyongyang violated UN Security Council resolutions.

Bolton, who is also currently on his visit to Tokyo with Trump, said Saturday that the recent missile launches by North Korea had been held in violation of the UNSC resolutions. However, Bolton stressed that the door to the third summit between Trump and Kim was open.

READ MORE: Possible Abe-Kim Summit to Help Solve North Korea Nuclear Issue — Bolton

Since 2018, North Korea has been engaged in denuclearization talks with the United States. The North Korean leader and the US President expressed their commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula at their first bilateral meeting in Singapore last June.

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The second summit between Trump and Kim, which was held in Hanoi in February, concluded with no agreement signed, and denuclearization talks between the two countries reportedly reached a deadlock. Washington demands that Pyongyang completely dismantle nuclear facilities in the country prior to receiving sanctions relief, while North Korea wants a portion of restrictions lifted before denuclearization begins.

North Korea has been subject to numerous UN sanctions over the past 10 years for its nuclear and ballistic missile tests. The sanctions aim at reducing the country's ability to develop its nuclear and missile programs and include a UN Security Council resolution that bans ship-to-ship transfers of refined petroleum products to North Korea.

READ MORE: North Korea Gave Washington $2 Million Hospital Bill for Otto Warmbier — Report

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