Vietnam is preparing to greet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Reuters reported Friday amid talk of a possible summit between him and President Donald Trump there in the coming weeks or months.Quoting a source familiar with the matter, the news outlet said Kim will travel to Vietnam for a state visit "after the Feb. 4-8 lunar new year" holiday. Another source confirmed Kim's trip but did not give any dates. (Yonhap)The sources stopped short of clarifying if Kim's trip would be related to his muc

A senior North Korean official arrived in Washington on Thursday apparently for negotiations with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on a second summit between the two sides.A plane from Beijing carrying Kim Yong-chol, known as one of the closest aides to leader Kim Jong-un, and his entourage touched down at Dulles International Airport. (Yonhap)It's the first time that a North Korean government official has flown directly into the US capital without any stopover in another US city.He left the airpo

Working-level officials from South Korea and the US agreed on Thursday that a sanctions exemption was needed to enable the two Koreas to carry out joint projects and said they would ask the United Nations Security Council to waive related restrictions. According to the Foreign Ministry, the two countries reached consensus during a videoconference that it was necessary to bring electronic devices into North Korea for two inter-Korean projects -- surveys to prepare for the reconnection of cross-bo

North Korea’s chief negotiator in US-North Korea talks, Kim Yong-chol, is expected to deliver a letter to US President Donald Trump during his visit to Washington this weekend, according to media reports Thursday. Kim, vice chairman of the ruling Workers’ Party Central Committee, is expected to arrive in the US capital on Thursday. He will meet Trump at the White House, following a meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday. North Korean senior official Kim Yong-chol (Yonhap)The se

South Korean and US government officials on Thursday discussed pending North Korea-related issues via videoconferencing, including Seoul's push for humanitarian programs, ministries involved said.In the "working group" session, the two sides also talked "in general" about a move to resume Pyongyang-Washington dialogue, according to Noh Kyu-duk, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."Today, there were consultations on such matters as video reunions of separated families and the exchange o

A second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is likely to take place in March or April in the Vietnamese resort city of Danang, a news report said Thursday.The Washington Post reported that Trump could make an announcement on the venue and date of the envisioned meeting with Kim as early as Friday, after a meeting with Kim Yong-chol, a top North Korean official expected to arrive in Washington on Thursday. (Yonhap)The report said that Trump is expected to

North Korea’s chief negotiator in US-North Korea talks, Kim Yong-chol, will head to Washington on Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed Wednesday, sparking speculations a second US-North Korea summit may be imminent. According to the ministry, North Korean officials, including Kim, have booked tickets to Washington that depart from Beijing on Thursday.  Kim Yong-chol. YonhapKim is the vice chairman of the ruling Workers’ Party Central Committee and the chief negotiator in US-North Kor

North Korea will send a top government official to Washington, DC later this week, CNN reported Wednesday amid indications that the two sides are moving closer to a second summit.Kim Yong-chol, North Korea's top negotiator and ex-spymaster, plans to arrive there Thursday (local time) for a two-day stay, according to the broadcaster.It cited two US sources familiar with ongoing negotiations. (Yonhap)Kim is expected to hold talks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on details of a planned summit b

A pro-unification organization in South Korea said a New Year's meeting with its North Korean counterparts, planned to be held at the North's Mount Kumgang resort, has been delayed to next month.The South Korean Committee for Implementation of the June 15 Joint Declaration had earlier said it would hold the joint event at the scenic mountain resort later this month. (Yonhap)The June 15 declaration refers to the agreement made by the two Koreas at their first-ever summit in 2000.At the request of

North Korea cannot afford to be slapped with additional international sanctions over the development of nuclear weapons, experts here said Tuesday, following a media report that the country might have produced material for more atomic bombs in 2018. Citing satellite-imagery analysis and leaked US intelligence, Bloomberg on Monday reported that Pyongyang has been strengthening its nuclear arsenal by churning out rockets and warheads as well as adding several intercontinental ballistic missiles an

Video reunions of separated families of South and North Korea are unlikely to happen around next month's Lunar New Year's Day holiday as it takes time to make preparations, including obtaining a sanctions exemption for the event, a unification ministry official said TuesdayOn Monday, the ministry handling inter-Korean affairs said that video reunions could take place on the occasion of the Feb. 5 holiday. It is a follow-up to an agreement between the leaders of the Koreas in September to hold vi

 Choe Son-hui, North Korea's vice foreign minister, showed up in Beijing on Wednesday on her way to Sweden, where she will attend an international conference.  Choe Son-hui (Yonhap)She arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport at around 11:30 a.m. on an Air Koryo flight. Asked about her destination, Choe answered, "I am going to an international conference in Sweden."It remains to be seen whether she will hold any sideline meetings in connection with the ongoing denuclearization negotiati

Senior North Korean and US officials may meet in Washington, DC later this week for consultations on a second summit, a diplomatic source in Seoul said Tuesday.Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to greet Kim Yong-chol, a top aide to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.The source pointed out that the two sides are resolved to have face-to-face negotiations. (Yonhap)"Given Secretary Pompeo's other commitments, it's true that (he's) available for the talks on Jan. 17-18," the source said.Pompeo

A North Korean propaganda outlet urged the United States on Tuesday to take practical reciprocal measures in denuclearization negotiations, warning the nuclear standoff won't ever be resolved if Washington sticks to sanctions and pressure.   "It is no one other than the US that has caused the nuclear problem on the Korean Peninsula, and if it does not take its share of the responsibility, only coming up with atrocious preconditions and forcing them on the other side, the nuclear issue cannot eve