US says North Korea’s WMD programme violates UN resolutions, after Donald Trump brushes off missile launch with ‘small weapons’ tweet
- US State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus declined to say if launches were of ballistic missiles or constituted weapons of mass destruction
- She reiterated that sanctions will remain in place until Trump and Kim Jong-un ‘negotiate a peaceful end’ to North Korean weapons programme
The US State Department said on Tuesday that North Korea’s overall programme of weapons of mass destruction violated UN resolutions, after President Donald Trump brushed off recent missile launches.
Choosing words carefully after Trump’s latest warm words for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus declined to say if North Korea’s launches were of ballistic missiles or constituted weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
She said the United States wanted a favourable relationship between Trump and Kim with a goal to “negotiate a peaceful end to the North Korean WMD programme”.
“We have said many times and we will continue to reiterate that the economic sanctions will remain in place until we’re there,” she said.
The Pentagon said on May 9 that launches by North Korea that day consisted of multiple ballistic missiles that flew in excess of 300km (185 miles).
