![Is the denuclearization of North Korea working? [Image source: VOANews/Youtube]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2018/7/7/660x290/b_502x220x82/is-the-denuclearization-of-north-korea-working-image-source-voanewsyoutube_2048905.jpg "Is the denuclearization of North Korea working? [Image source: VOANews/Youtube]")
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo left Pyongyang on Saturday (June 7), after a two-day visit with North Korean advisors discussing the timeline it will take to denuclearize. Mike Pompeo seemed to be in high spirits after the talks, however, North Korea felt extremely different from the US Secretary, saying the attitude of the US was “regrettable.” North Korea furthered their statement, saying that the US did not have the same spirit they had at the June 12 summit, between Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump.
Pompeo traveled to Pyongyang on a follow up after the historic summit that took place in Singapore last month.
Mike Pompeo seemed optimistic and told CNN in a statement: “We had many hours of productive conversations. These are complicated issues, but we’ve made progress on almost all the central issues. Some places, a great deal of progress. Other places, there’s still more work to be done.”
However, according to Associated Press, North Korea described the meeting with the US Secretary of State, as “worrisome” and their distrust of the US delegation “amplified.” It was noted that their “willingness to denuclearize could falter." They also added that the United States is trying to “unilaterally pressure the country into abandoning its nukes.”
NBC News mentioned that Pompeo did not meet with Kim Jong-un personally, instead, he met with former spy chief Vice Chairman Kim Yong Chol.
A sudden shift to not denuclearize
An unnamed North Korean spokesperson complained that the United States is abusing power and "making unilateral demands on CVID" - The Complete, Verifiable, and Irreversible Denuclearization of North Korea - and according to VOX, North Korea had been considering “providing reciprocal measures.”
A statement released to CNN by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), said: “The United States is fundamentally mistaken to think that the demands that reflect their “robbery mentality” are acceptable to our patience.”
Nevertheless, Mike Pompeo assured Americans that Kim Jong-un is still committed to ending their nuclear program.
Denuclearizing North Korea isn’t going as planned
Despite Pompeo’s words, there are satellite images that were analyzed by US researchers. These showed that improvements have been made to a North Korean nuclear facility and the finalization of a ballistic missile manufacturing site.
When concerns were addressed to the US Secretary of State, he still remained optimistic about what Kim Jong-un and President Trump had agreed on during their summit, saying that Kim Jong-un is still committed to denuclearization.
President Trump took to Twitter saying, "There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea," and congratulated himself in the part he had to play. But, it is still unclear how committed North Korea is to denuclearizing. According to VOX, there is increased activity in recent days, indicating that North Korea is producing fuel for nuclear weapons. They seem to be improving nuclear facilities, while figuring out ways to hide nuclear weapons and production from the US.
