Anchor: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to travel to North Korea and meet with Kim Jong-un on Sunday. Washington says he'll visit four Asian countries on this tour.
Kim Bum-soo reports. 

Report: 

[Sound bite: U.S. State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert]
"In Pyongyang on October the 7th, the secretary will meet with Chairman Kim... In Seoul on October 7th and 8th,  the secretary will meet with President Moon and Foreign Minister Kang. In Beijing on October the 8th..."

U.S. State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert on Tuesday announced the specifics of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's upcoming travel to the two Koreas, China and Japan. 

On Sunday, He will arrive in Pyongyang to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. 

[Sound bite: U.S. State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert] 
"I think it shows forward progress and momentum that the secretary is making his fourth trip back in less than a year... And that shows the president's commitment to the agreement that he and Chairman Kim came to at the Singapore summit."

Pompeo met with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York last week. During his UN speech, the North Korean top diplomat blamed the U.S. for international sanction measures on his country. 

Amid discussions on ways to ease sanctions on North Korea among UN Security Council member states, Nauert reaffirmed that there is no change in the U.S. policy.

[Sound bite: U.S. State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert]
"I can tell you our policy has not changed, Our policy has not changed. Things stand firmly in place such as the sanctions remain in place. We continue to coordinate very closely as we will on this upcoming trip with our South Korean and also our Japanese counterparts and we'll continue to move ahead and continue with the conversations."  

Pompeo's visit is aimed at laying the groundwork for a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader.  Part of that task involves mapping a path to progress in getting rid of the North's nuclear weapons.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News.