North Korea, US Still Talking Despite Canceled Summit
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WASHINGTON (CBSMiami) - While the historic summit between the U.S. and North Korea is off, for now, the two sides appear to be still talking.
Friday morning North Korea issued a statement saying President Trump's sudden cancellation of his long-touted meeting with Kim Jong Un, was "unexpected". Pyongyang says it feels "great regret for it" and insists it remains unchanged in its goal and will do everything it can for peace and stability of the Korean peninsula and humankind.
President Donald Trump responded to the statement on Twitter.
Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea. We will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 25, 2018
This was a decided different tone than the one earlier this week when Trump suddenly canceled summit, saying North Korea reneged on several promises and stood up an American delegation attempting to make plans in Singapore last week. He also accused North Korea of "tremendous anger and open hostility." It's a reference to a North Korean foreign minister calling Vice President Mike Pence a "political dummy."
After canceling the summit, Trump revived his military rhetoric.
"Our military, which is by far the most powerful anywhere in the world, that has been greatly enhanced recently as you all know is ready if necessary," he said.
Some lawmakers say it's clear now is not the time for a summit.
"I think the Americans are ready, it appears maybe they were not," said Senator Bob Corker, R-TN.
Others say both sides need to dial back the rhetoric.
"Increased aggressive rhetoric on both sides in the last week have shown that it was unlikely to be productive," said Senator Tim Kaine, D-VA.
Both the White House and North Korea have left open the possibility of a meeting in the future.