A recent terrorism blacklist report released by the US Department of State is proof that Washington continues to pursue a “hostile policy” in relation to North Korea, the country claimed on Tuesday. A statement by the North Korean Foreign Ministry mentioned that the inclusion of the country in the report “is an insult to and perfidy against a dialogue partner,” adding that “the channel of the dialogue between (North Korea) and the US is more and more narrowing” as a result.
North Korea featured on the US terrorism blacklist between 1987 and 2008, when the US removed it as part of an effort aimed at securing a deal with Pyongyang about its nuclear program. Under US President Donald Trump, North Korea was put back on the list in 2017.
Last week, North Korea launched two missiles as part of an unannounced test, possibly in order to put pressure on the US to meet an end-of-the-year deadline set by the regime for the lifting of US sanctions. In October, a new round of US-North Korean working-level negotiations collapsed within hours, with Pyongyang accusing Washington of being unwilling to change its approach to the country. Those negotiations were the first substantial talks between the two countries since the failure of the US-North Korea summit in Hanoi in February. In the past few months, North Korea repeatedly slammed US sanctions and carried out a variety of missile tests.
Read more: N. Korea says US terrorism blacklist hinders nuke diplomacy
