Amid speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could visit Russia in the coming months,... diplomats from Washington and Moscow have met to discuss North Korea.
Lee Ji-won has more.
U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov met on Wednesday where they discussed "coordination of efforts to resolve the Korean Peninsula issues."
Russia's foreign ministry announced the meeting,... but did not give any more details on the specific agenda.
Their meeting comes at the request of Washington's diplomat,... amid growing speculation about a possible Pyeongyang-Moscow summit.
Ever since Hanoi, North Korea and Russia have been increasing their exchanges,... with officials traveling between the countries,... including North Korean protocol chief Kim Chang-son's visit to Moscow last month.
It's expected that Ambassador Huntsman was updated on the details of a possible Kim-Putin summit,... while also seeking Russia's cooperation in helping Washington resume denuclearization talks with the North.
The two sides have been at a standstill since the Hanoi summit collapsed in February,... with North Korea wanting a phased dismantlement of its nuclear program in exchange for the partial removal of sanctions at each step,... while the U.S. is asking Pyeongyang to take concrete denuclearization steps and provide an overall roadmap in exchange for sanctions relief.
Now another Washington-Moscow meeting is coming up,... as Deputy Foreign Minister Morgulov announced that Washington's nuclear envoy Stephen Biegun will be visiting the country sometime in April.
This is a reciprocal visit to Morgulov's trip to Washington in late January.
During his meetings with counterparts from around the world after the Hanoi summit, Biegun has been stressing the need for the international community to continue implementing sanctions on the North.
But with U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly softening his tone on new sanctions on the regime,... it remains to be seen if Biegun will push the need for sanctions and pressure when he meets Morgulov later this month.
Lee Ji-won, Arirang News.