The White House says that U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will meet with a senior North Korean official in New York this week ahead of a potential summit between their leaders.
 
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday said in a statement that Pompeo and Kim Yong-chol, the vice chairman of the Central Committee of the North's ruling Workers' Party, will meet "later this week." 

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert added that the secretary plans to make a two-day trip to New York starting Wednesday.

Sanders said that the U.S. continues to actively prepare for President Donald Trump's expected summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore.

Kim Yong-chol, who is considered to be a member of the North Korean leader's inner circle, will reportedly arrive in New York on Wednesday afternoon via Beijing.

Kim and Pompeo are expected to hold extensive talks on big deals related to the North's denuclearization roadmap and security assurances for Pyongyang. 

There are speculations that the top North Korean official may pay a visit to Trump as a special envoy from Kim Jong-un or convey a letter during the New York trip. 

Trump tweeted earlier on Tuesday that the senior North Korean official was en route to the U.S., calling the visit a "solid response" to his letter.

[Photo : YONHAP News]