Over the weekend, reports surfaced that the United States and North Korea have been holding secret, direct talks ahead of the proposed summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
And Washington is now saying Pyongyang is willing to talk about abandoning its nuclear weapons when the two leaders meet sometime in May.
Won Jung-hwan reports.

The White House says North Korea has confirmed directly to the Trump administration that it's willing to negotiate its potential denuclearization with the United States.
U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are expected to meet in late May or early June.
The summit would follow a year of tensions and heated rhetoric between the two leaders over Pyongyang's testing of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.

And according to U.S. press reports during the weekend,… the two sides have already been holding secret, direct talks in preparation for the summit. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency chief Mike Pompeo has been leading the communication with North Korean intelligence officials through back channels to plan for the highly anticipated summit.

Some critics say it is early to assume the talks will happen as Pyongyang has been silent about the proposed summit.
While U.S. President Trump agreed to the summit last month during a visit from South Korean envoys,... the North Korean regime has not publicly declared its invitation by Kim Jong Un to meet with Trump.

Not much is known about the bilateral summit, including the venue and date of the meeting, but these latest reports suggest the groundwork for the summit is being put in place.
Won Jung-hwan, Arirang News.