This translation has been automatically generated and has not been verified for accuracy.The United States changed its mind and is now refusing to sign a letter that would have authorized the U.N. Security Council to hold a meeting on the human rights situation in North Korea, diplomats said Monday.
The State Department said it was instructing the U.S. Mission to propose the discussion “in light of recent events on the Korean Peninsula” and President Donald Trump’s meeting over lunch on Dec. 5 with ambassadors from the 15 Security Council nations. It made no mention of human rights. North Korea has ramped up its missile tests in recent months, and experts say the launches are likely to continue in an effort to pressure Washington into meeting Pyongyang’s demand for new proposals to revive nuclear diplomacy by the end of December deadline.
North Korea has hinted at lifting its moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests if the Trump administration fails to make substantial concessions in nuclear diplomacy before the new year. The European statement condemned North Korea’s 13 “provocative” ballistic missile launches since May, saying they violate Security Council resolutions and “undermine regional security and stability as well as international peace and security.”
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