The White House says that the U.S. will not lift sanctions until North Korea takes "concrete actions" to denuclearize.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said at a press briefing on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump plans to continue the "maximum pressure" campaign of economic and diplomatic sanctions until the North takes actions toward denuclearization.

She stressed that the U.S.’ goal remains the "complete and total" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, adding that certainly no sanctions will be lifted until the U.S. sees concrete actions taken by the North.

When asked about the possibility that the U.S. may lift sanctions before the North fully denuclearizes, Sanders said that Washington is not naive in the process and wouldn't make the mistake of past administrations in taking the North Koreans "simply at their word."

When asked to clarify President Donald Trump's tweet that North Korea "agreed" to denuclearize, Sanders cited that South Korean President Moon Jae-in has said that North Korea has expressed a will for complete denuclearization.

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