A senior U.S. official said the Trump administration still believes it can reach and implement a denuclearization deal with North Korea by the end of the president's first term. 

The State Department official told reporters in a briefing on Thursday that despite the failure of the second U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi, the administration still believes the goal of reaching a nuclear deal is achievable by January 2021. 

The official said the North’s missile engine testing site in Dongchang-ri is not a critical part of the regime's nuclear infrastructure, adding the U.S. is still trying to determine exactly what the North is doing with their recent activity. 

The official added Washington is not considering sanctions exemptions for the resumption of key economic projects between the Koreas -- the inter-Korean Gaeseong Industrial Complex and tours to Mount Geumgang.

[Photo : YONHAP News]