Let's start with the shaky state of Pyongyang-Washington ties.
Could there be another reason behind the current stalemate in negotiations between the United States and North Korea?
While many are pointing an accusing finger at Pyongyang for dragging its feet on denuclearization,... a U.S. media outlet reports that President Trump may have made Kim Jong-un a big promise of his own during the Singapore summit,... one he has yet to keep.
Lee Ji-won has more.
U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly promised North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that he would end the Korean War during their historic summit in Singapore back in June.
U.S. media outlet Vox, citing multiple sources familiar with the negotiations, reported Wednesday that President Trump told Kim that he would sign a declaration to end the war soon after their summit.
But since then, the U.S. has been repeatedly urging North Korea to take more concrete actions for its denuclearization, more specifically, handing over 60 to 70 percent of its nuclear warheads within six to eight months.
Vox says this is likely what brought about the deadlock and the increasingly hostile response from the North.

One of the sources told Vox that President Trump having promised a peace declaration but then making it conditional would seem as though Washington is reneging on its commitments and it makes sense why the North Koreans are angry.

While the White House declined to comment, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said she's not familiar with that being part of the overall agreement, but once again reiterated the U.S. believes denuclearization has to take place before anything else.

Despite the skepticism and doubt, likely aggravated by President Trump's cancellation of his Secretary of State's visit to Pyongyang,... the president once again reiterated that he's on good terms with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, President Trump said the U.S. is doing very well with North Korea.
But he pointed to China as one of the reasons for the current stalemate with the North.

"China is the route to North Korea. Ninety three percent of the products and various things that go into North Korea, go through China. And I think that China makes it much more difficult in terms of our relationship with North Korea."

President Trump praised Chinese President Xi Jinping and China in general, but said that, with the U.S. losing hundreds of billions of dollars a year to China, he had to straighten out their lob-sided trade relationship.
Lee Ji-won, Arirang News.