SEOUL, South Korea — The top United States envoy on North Korea warned on Monday that if Pyongyang conducted a major weapons test in the coming days as feared, it would be “most unhelpful,” as Washington tried to de-escalate tensions with the country. “We are fully aware of the strong potential for North Korea to conduct a major provocation in the days ahead,” Stephen E. Biegun, Washington’s top representative on North Korea, said during a news conference in Seoul. “Such an action will be most unhelpful in achieving a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.”Mr. Biegun, who was recently also appointed the State Department’s No. 2 official, met with senior South Korean officials in Seoul on Monday amid signs that North Korea was preparing to launch a satellite or flight-test an intercontinental ballistic missile. In the last 10 days, the country has conducted two tests that it called “very important” or “crucial” to improve what it called its “strategic nuclear deterrent.”

Source: New York Times December 16, 2019 04:41 UTC