PYONGYANG (dpa-AFX) - North Korean officials have told their US counterparts that the country's leader Kim Jong Un was willing to discuss denuclearization with Washington, the media has reported.
This could pave the way for an unprecedented summit of the leaders of the two countries, which is expected to take place in May.
It is the first time Pyongyang making the offer directly to Washington, after it was previously conveyed through South Korean national security adviser Chung Eui-yong.
'The US has confirmed that Kim Jong Un is willing to discuss the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,' The Wall Street Journal and Washington Post quoted a Trump administration official as saying.
Officials of the United States and North Korea have been holding secret talks in preparation for the historic bilateral summit meeting, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Monday quoting 'a National Security Council spokesperson.'
The White House announced last month it had agreed to a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Kim to be held by the end of May.
But Pyongyang has not followed up with Washington since, which the Journal suggested may indicate that Seoul overstated the North's willingness to negotiate over its own nuclear arsenal.
The venue and date of the meeting have yet to be set.
Many analysts remain skeptical that North Korea will ever denuclearize, especially after repeated muscle flexing by its leader about nuclear potential targeting the United States.
Kim had claimed multiple times that Pyongyang tested nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX