Anchor: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday that Washington is willing to begin talks with North Korea without preconditions. This is a notable change from Washington’s previous stance when it said Pyongyang must first halt its missile and nuclear testing.
Our Park Jong-hong has this report.
 
Report: 

[Sound bite: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson]
"We have said, from the diplomatic side, we are ready to talking anytime North Korea would like to talk, and we are ready to have the first meeting without preconditions." 

Washington says it is willing to have the first talks with North Korea unconditionally and then talk about denuclearization.

In a speech to a Washington think tank on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said it was not realistic to expect North Korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions as a precondition to holding bilateral dialogue.

[Sound bite: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson]
"Let's just meet, and we can talk about the weather if you want. We can talk about whether it is going to be a square table or a round table, if that is what you are excited about. But can we at least sit down and see each other face to face. And then we can begin to lay out a map, a roadmap of what we might be willing to work towards."

Tillerson added U.S. military preparedness to respond to any North Korean threat was strong in the meantime.

[Sound bite: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson]
"In the meantime, our military preparedness is strong. Because of our situation the President has ordered our military planners to have a full range of contingencies available, and they are ready. As I have told people many times, I will continue our diplomatic efforts until the first bomb drops."

Tillerson's remark came as tensions have increased over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs with its latest test of an intercontinental ballistic missile on November 29th.

The offer for dialogue is seen by the media as heralding a new chapter of diplomacy.

Tillerson said the U.S. is willing to talk about whatever North Korea wants noting that Kim Jong-un seems quite different from his father and grandfather.

He did say that North Korea should refrain from additional provocations as it would be hard to continue dialogue if during the meeting the North decides to drop a bomb.

While he didn’t say how long the hiatus in provocations should be for both sides to sit down at the discussion table, many experts in Washington believe that Tillerson is referring to more than 60 days of respite from provocations.
Park Jong-hong, KBS World Radio News.

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