North Korea says talks with US will remain just a 'hope' if Washington sticks to 'failed past'

Seoul, July 29 A potential meeting between North Korea and the United States will only remain a "hope" for Washington if it sticks to its "failed past," the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said Tuesday.

Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the ruling party's Central Committee, made the remarks as US President Donald Trump has expressed his willingness to meet with the North's leader.

"If the US fails to accept the changed reality and persists in the failed past, the DPRK-US meeting will remain as a 'hope' of the US side," Kim said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

DPRK is the acronym of North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Kim underscored that recognising Pyongyang as a nuclear state should be a "prerequisite" going forward, saying that any attempt to deny such status "will be thoroughly rejected."

The leader's sister left room for an improvement in ties between North Korea and Washington, noting that personal ties between their two leaders are "not bad," Yonhap news agency reported.

Still, she said such a relationship will not flourish should the push for the North's denuclearisation continue.

"If the personal relations between the top leaders of the DPRK and the US are to serve the purpose of denuclearisation, it can be interpreted as nothing but a mockery of the other party," Kim said.

Earlier on Monday, Kim made remarks in a statement carried by the KCNA, as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has sought to resume dialogue with Pyongyang to ease military tension and improve inter-Korean ties.

It marks the North's first official statement on the Lee administration, which took office last month.

"Looking at around the past 50 days since Lee Jae Myung took office ... (he) is no different from his predecessor in blindly adhering to the South Korea-US alliance and pursuing confrontation with us," Kim said.

No matter how hard the Lee government tries to draw North Korea's attention, the North's stance towards the South will not change, she said.

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