US Secy of State Pompeo downplays possibility of summit with North Korea

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has downplayed the possibility of another summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un before the US presidential election. He said Trump would only want to engage if there were real prospects of progress.

Pompeo's comments come in the aftermath of repeated statements by North Korean leadership insisting it would no longer have high-profile meetings with Trump.

"The North Koreans have given mixed signals, but the truth is President Donald Trump only wants to engage in a summit if we believe there's a sufficient likelihood that we can make real progress in achieving the outcomes that were set forth in Singapore," Mike Pompeo said during the event hosted by The Hill, referring to the first Trump-Kim summit in June 2018.

"You need to have a willing partner, and the North Koreans have chosen at this point in time not to engage in a way that can lead to a potential solution. We hope they'll change their mind," he said.

Kim and US President Donald Trump first met in Singapore two years ago but talks over Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal have been stalled since their Hanoi summit collapsed in early 2019.

In February 2019, the Americans rejected North Korean demands for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capability.

Trump said earlier this month he would "certainly" meet with Kim again if he thought it was going to be helpful.

Analysts believe North Korea will avoid serious talks with the Americans for now before attempting an eventual return to negotiations after the US election in November.

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said there was "no need" for another summit with the United States unless Washington offered a "decisive change" in approach.

Kim Yo Jong -- who has emerged as one of her brother's closest advisors -- said, "There is no need for us to sit across with the US right now."

Kim Jong-un declared in December an end to moratoriums on nuclear and ballistic missile tests, and Pyongyang has repeatedly said it has no intention to continue talks unless Washington drops what it describes as "hostile" policies towards the North.

Washington stations 28,500 troops in the South to defend it against its neighbour, and has a range of military assets in Japan and the wider Pacific region.