The White House has stressed its goal of achieving the final, fully verified denuclearization(FFVD) of North Korea in response to news that Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Pyongyang this week.
A White House official told Seoul-based Yonhap News on Monday that the U.S.' goal is to achieve the North's FFVD as agreed to by its leader Kim Jong-un.
The official added that the world is focused on Kim's commitment to denuclearization.
Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department said the U.S. will continue to closely coordinate with other countries, including China, to denuclearize North Korea.
A department official told Yonhap that Washington, along with its allies, partners and other permanent members of the UN Security Council, including China, are committed to the shared goal of achieving the North's FFVD.
The remarks appear to stress the responsibility of China as a permanent member of the UN Security Council to enforce UN sanctions against North Korea.