A U.S. State Department official has remarked that while the door to diplomacy with North Korea remains open, the regime has only responded with provocations, and therefore the U.S. will continue to strengthen security cooperation with South Korea and Japan.

Daniel Kritenbrink, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, made these comments during a forum hosted by the Washington-based think tank Brookings Institution on Tuesday. He asserted that Washington has no choice but to double down on its security arrangements with its two Asian allies, adding no one should doubt the ironclad nature of Washington’s security commitments to South Korea and Japan.

Kritenbrink stressed the need to strengthen broader international solidarity towards enforcing sanctions against North Korea in light of the regime's recent actions. 

Meanwhile, he dismissed China's criticism that the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy is promoting conflict in the region, calling it completely unfounded.

The official emphasized that the relationship between the U.S. and China is fundamentally competitive, but Washington aims to manage this competition in a reasonable manner.