US: NKorea wanted peace treaty; dropped out over nukes

WASHINGTON

North Korea sought a peace treaty with the U.S., but abandoned efforts after Washington insisted denuclearization be part of any agreement, the White House said Monday.

“We considered their proposal, but also made clear that denuclearization had to be part of any discussion,” spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters.

“As long as there is an insistence on the part of the North Koreans to a nuclear stockpile, it's going to be very difficult for us to resolve our differences,” he added.

Earnest did not say when Pyongyang made the request.

The 1950-1953 Korean conflict ended with the partition of the Korean peninsula into a north and south.

The North and the U.S. agreed to an armistice, but not a peace treaty. As a result, the U.S. maintains a force of approximately 28,500 troops in the South.

Earnest maintained that discussions with the North “were entirely consistent with the long-standing policy that the Obama's administration has put forward.”

The North has rattled the U.S. and its regional allies with a nuclear test that it says was the successful test of a hydrogen bomb in early January, and the Feb. 7 launch of a satellite into space in defiance of international sanctions.

President Barack Obama last week signed tighter sanctions against Pyongyang – targeting all individuals involved with its nuclear program.

North Korea’s actions will be discussed during a Tuesday meeting between Secretary of State John Kerry and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.