North Korea condemns latest US sanctions

North Korea has denounced the latest US sanctions, saying they could "forever block the path of denuclearization on the Korean peninsula."

Washington said it imposed sanctions on three senior officials after a report revealed a series of human rights abuses.

A historic summit between the leaders of the nations this summer seemed to point the way to better relations.

Since then, North Korea has been involved in unfortunate exchanges and actions that have reduced tensions.

There have been suggestions for a second leadership summit. Although President Donald Trump said he was open to the idea, he said this week he was in no hurry.

What did North Korea say?

In a statement, the North Korean administration expressed its "shock and outrage" at the new sanctions imposed by the United States.

The statement by the North Korean news agency KCNA has accused the US State Department. UU To be "determined to return ... relations with the state of last year, which was marked by the exchange of shots".

In last year's verbal exchanges, President Donald Trump said that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was a "small rocket" whose threats "would meet fire and fury as the world has never seen it" . Among the many reproaches of the North, he called Mr. Trump "crazy old man".

North Korea's latest statement said the US policy of "maximum pressure" would be its "biggest miscalculation" and that it should instead regain the confidence that was expected after the leaders' summit in Singapore.

What are the new sanctions?

They followed a report from the State Department of the North that Congress regularly requires.

USA UU He promised to seize the US assets of Kim's right-hand man, Choe Ryong-hae, and two others, the Minister of Security, Jong Kyong-thaek and the propaganda officer Pak Kwang-ho.

State Department spokesman Robert Palladino said, "Human rights violations in North Korea are among the worst in the world, including extrajudicial executions, forced labor, and torture. prolonged arbitrary detention, rape, forced abortions and other acts of sexual violence. "

What has happened since Singapore?

At the June summit, the two leaders signed an agreement to work on the denuclearization of the peninsula. But it did not include a calendar, details, or mechanism to verify the process.

Since the summit, some successes have been recorded, especially in inter-Korean relations.

Only this week, North Korean and South Korean soldiers made several friendly crossings on their territory for the first time since the split of the country, which made it possible to verify the dismantling of guard posts in the demilitarized zone.

Relations between the United States and North Korea are more stagnant.

Labor talks between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Kim Yong-chol of North Korea were abruptly canceled in November and were not reprogrammed.

Personal connections between leaders seem relatively unaffected, albeit somewhat unpredictable.

In September, Trump praised Kim's "very warm" letter at a follow-up summit.

But, as Laura Bicker of the BBC in Seoul points out, the insurmountable obstacle remains the nuclear weapons of the North.

The United States asserts that it will never allow an agreement to officially end the Korean War, nor the lifting of economic sanctions imposed on the North, while the Kim Administration is a nuclear threat.