The violence in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions has reached unprecedented levels in recent months and shows no signs of stopping in the run up to presidential elections on 7 October. Neither side is inclined to negotiate as increasingly brazen separatist attacks are met with increasingly brutal responses from security forces.

On 12 July, at least 10 people were killed when suspected separatists attacked the defence minister’s convoy travelling between Kumba and Mbonge in the south-west region. A few days later on 17 July, security forces engaged separatist militants in a gun battle in Bamenda, capital of the north-west region.

These are but two examples of the acts of violence that are occurring on a weekly basis in Cameroon’s north-west and south-west regions. As usual it is the citizens who bear the brunt of the fighting.

In a June report, the International Crisis Group estimates that 163 people have been killed to date in the conflict – the majority of whom were civilians. The UNHCR estimates that at least 160,000 people have been displaced by the fighting and a further 20,000 have sought refuge in neighbouring Nigeria.

The current crisis in the Anglophone regions began in October 2016 with widespread protests against the central government’s continued marginalisation of Cameroon’s English-speaking community. The violence escalated a year later after secessionists declared the symbolic independence of the two western regions.

The government responded swiftly with mass arrests, bans on public gatherings, and the use of deadly force against civilians. Armed separatist groups proliferated as the security forces continued to militarise the Anglophone regions.

Although the current flare-up began in 2016, Cameroon’s “Anglophone problem” has its roots in the country’s colonial history. The north-west and south-west regions – previously administered by Britain – joined an independent federated Cameroon in 1961. A snap 1972 referendum abolished most the of the western regions’ autonomy and implemented centralised state control from Yaoundé.

In a way, the government’s response to the current Anglophone agitation is not surprising. It is the same tactic employed in the country’s Far North region where the state has been battling Boko Haram since 2014. Government forces have been repeatedly accused of arbitrarily killing or detaining citizens suspected of complicity with extremists.

Despite facing two insurgencies, President Paul Biya – in power since 1982 – retains a strong grip on power. On 13 July, the 85-year-old Biya announced his intention to run for re-election in October.

Holding elections in the north-west and south-west regions will be virtually impossible in the current climate of insecurity. This would significantly disadvantage the country’s largest opposition party whose support base is in the Anglophone regions.

The AU and Cameroon’s Western partners have repeatedly called for negotiations. Though the government agrees to the need for talks, it rejects any form of outside mediation.

The Catholic Church is the only local institution that could act as an independent mediator – it represents about one third of all Cameroonians and is present in all of the country’s 10 regions. Unfortunately the church seems to be riven by the same divisions as the rest of the country. Its inability to present a unified front thoroughly undermines its capacity as a facilitator of potential peace talks.

A more fundamental issue relates to what a successful resolution of the crisis would look like. The government will not except any form of succession. Moreover, it is not clear to what extent residents of the western regions actually support succession. What is clear, however, is that a majority of Anglophone Cameroonians support a peaceful resolution.

To this extent, the more moderate opposition leaders have been pushing for a political solution – calling either for a return to the power-sharing of federalism or for the devolution of power to regional leaders through decentralisation.

Despite some conciliatory noises and mostly hollow gestures, the government seems unlikely to grant any major concessions to Anglophone leaders. For their part, opposition leaders have not done enough to condemn separatist violence and encourage peaceful resistance.

A negotiated settlement is the only hope for a peaceful resolution of the current crisis. Unfortunately, given the entrenched positions of both the state and separatist militants, it is a rather slim hope at the moment.

Source: Daily Maverick

FOR decades Cameroon, wedged between central and west Africa, enjoyed a reputation for calm and stability while its neighbours were mired in a cycle of coups-d’état, wars and bloodshed. Yet today that stability is no longer guaranteed, and a long-simmering crisis is erupting. Protests, which began in October 2016 with Anglophone teachers and barristers demonstrating about French curricula and legal texts, have morphed into a conflict of kidnappings, beheadings and the torching of villages. What went wrong?

Cameroon was colonised by the Germans in the late 19th century, and after the first world war the League of Nations entrusted the administration of different parts to the British and the French. In 1961, lured by the promise of federalism, the formerly British-held North-West and South-West regions chose to join the newly independent and previously French-held Cameroon. But 11 years later, the country’s first president, Ahmadou Ahidjo reneged on the federalist deal and imposed a unitary state, governed from French-speaking Yaounde. In 1984 the current president, Paul Biya, changed the name of the country to the Republic of Cameroon (the name of the former Francophone territory) and removed from the national flag the second star, which represented the Anglophone regions. The effects are still felt today. Anglophones, who make up less than a fifth of the population, feel marginalised in almost every sphere of life, ranging from the allocation of state resources to political representation.

The government reacted to the spreading protests by dismissing the demonstrators as terrorists, throwing their leaders in jail and cutting off internet connections to the two Anglophone regions. This just created more problems. The leadership vacuum was filled by a range of separatist groups, with senior activists ranging from worried men in suits to armed criminals taking advantage of the chaos. Still angered by Ahidjo’s treachery almost half-a-century ago, Anglophones continue to complain that they were not given the option to set up their own state after independence. That has become one of the main demands of some fighters, who declared the establishment of the “Republic of Ambazonia” last October. The crisis has duly developed into a vicious war. Both sides have committed atrocities, but the Anglophones are paying the harshest price. More than 21,000 have fled to neighbouring Nigeria, while in south-west Cameroon entire settlements have become ghost villages, with more than 150,000 people displaced.

Worse, this is just one of three crises facing Cameroon. Northern parts have been affected by the Boko Haram insurgency spilling over from Nigeria. The jihadists’ campaign of suicide bombings and other attacks has forced almost 250,000 Cameroonians to flee their homes and led to the arrival of more than 95,000 Nigerians refugees. At the same time, over 230,000  refugees from the Central African Republic have come to eastern Cameroon, bringing with them a bloody struggle for power and access to natural resources. In the presidential election due for October, Mr Biya—Africa’s oldest ruler at 85—is expected to seek a seventh term in power. Mr Biya has no obvious successor, in a government anchored in sclerosis. Yet stability in Cameroon is vital not only for the region but for Africa at large. It is the biggest economy in central Africa, and for many people in Cameroon, Chad and the Central African Republic, the port of Douala is a life-line. Cameroon’s elite soldiers, arguably the most efficient in the region, have played a crucial role in the fight against Boko Haram and ISIS splinter groups. If Cameroon plunges further into chaos, other countries could be pulled down with it.

Culled from The Economist

US President Donald Trump says he does not want to rush to denuclearize North Korea under a deal he reached with Kim Jong-un last month, a shift in tone from when the US leader said the process would begin very soon.

“Discussions are ongoing and they’re going very, very well,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. “We have no time limit. We have no speed limit.”

Trump also said that he had discussed Pyongyang with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday at their summit in Helsinki, Finland.

“President Putin is going to be involved in the sense that he is with us,” he said.

Trump and Kim met on June 12 in Singapore, the first between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader, and signed a joined document, committing to establishing new relations and achieving peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Before the summit, the Trump administration said denuclearization should start “without delay,” and after the meeting, it spoke of the process starting “very quickly.”

So far, however, no concrete progress has been reported and Pyongyang has complained the Americans are making unilateral demands.

Kim, prior to the meeting, said that the two leaders had “decided to leave the past behind” and that “the world will see a major change.”

Trump said he had formed a “very special bond” with Kim and that Washington’s relationship with Pyongyang would be very different.

However, last month Trump declared North Korea an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the US as he acted to maintain harsh economic sanctions against Pyongyang.

“The existence and risk of proliferation of weapons-usable fissile material on the Korean Peninsula and the actions and policies of the Government of North Korea continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States,” Trump said.

Source: Presstv

President of Cameroon, Paul Biya, has confirmed his candidacy for presidential polls slated for October 7 this year.

This will be his seventh consecutive mandate which will also extend his reign till 2025. It will, however, be the fifth universal suffrage with multiple candidates.

The octogenarian who is considered one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders made the announcement vis his social media handles on early Friday morning.

Dear Compatriots in Cameroon & the Diaspora, Aware of the challenges we must take up together to ensure a more united, stable & prosperous Cameroon, I am willing to respond positively to your overwhelming calls. I will stand as Your Candidate in the upcoming presidential election, his post read.

Paul Biya of Cameroon

• Full Name/Age: Paul Biya, 85 years
• Profession: Technocrat/Politician
• Became President: November 1982, having served as Prime Minister since June 1975
• Predecessor: Ahmadou Ahidjo
• Presidential reign: 36 years. 43 years (PM and presidential era)

Source: Africa News

For close to two years, Cameroon, a poor and corrupt Central African country has been caught up in a downward spiral as the killing in the two English-speaking regions of the country take a turn for the worse.

A strike by teachers and lawyers has turned into an armed conflict between Southern Cameroonian separatists and the Yaoundé regime that has distinguished itself through its corruption and indolence.

The mismanagement of the crisis has shocked the entire world, with many in the international community calling into question, the government’s ability to run a country that has once been the envy of its neighbors.

In the month of May, things appeared to be slowing down, but over the last week, the killing demon has reared its ugly head as the government steps up its attacks that have resulted in the killing of over a thousand civilians and some two hundred separatists.

The world is horrified by these killings and several actors are using back channels to mount enormous pressure on the country’s ailing president, Paul Biya, who is considered as the architect of Cameroon’s descent into chaos.

The chaos is still playing out in several cities in Southern Cameroons. On Monday, July 9, 2018, there was intense fighting in Buea, a city Southern Cameroonians consider as their capital. The fighting resulted in the killing of six police officers by Southern Cameroonian fighters.

Residents of the city have reported that Monday was the worst day in their city. Southern Cameroonian fighters have finally decided to come to the cities so as to engage the ill-prepared army soldiers in street battles.

This is no good news for the Yaoundé regime that has been working tooth and nail to protect the city of Buea. Threats from Southern Cameroonian fighters have finally compelled the city’s mayor, Patrick Ekema, who had vowed to protect the city, to flee to Douala, East Cameroon’s major port city.

Even the South West region’s governor, Okala Bilai, has also taken up refuge in Douala as the pressure from Southern Cameroonian fighters mounts. It should be recalled that there is a “fatwa” on the heads of Mayor Ekema and Governor Bilai who have spent a greater part of the last two years insulting Southern Cameroonians.

In Limbe, Southern Cameroon’s major port city, residents were compelled to respect ghost town operations as they heard that the fighters had finally set foot in Buea. The city of Limbe has been insulated from the chaos that has been playing out in Southern Cameroons over the last one year and this has made it a safe haven for many who are fleeing other cities in search a peaceful sanctuary for themselves and their families.

But the pseudo-peace in Limbe will surely not last for a long time. Southern Cameroonian fighters who were initially lurking in forests around the region have made up their minds to come to the cities. They are sick and tired of constant attacks from mosquitoes and poisonous reptiles who consider their presence in the jungle as an unfriendly intrusion into their private space and territory.

Residents of Limbe know that they will soon be playing spectator to some violent attacks from Southern Cameroonian fighters. It is a matter of time. Other cities are already suffering as a result of the fighting. Schools and courts have remained closed in cities where there have been serious fighting. Businesses have been dealt a severe blow and poverty is gradually taking root among the suffering population. Limbe’s image as a peaceful environment is gradually being eroded.

With an influx of people coming from other cities, it is obvious that Southern Cameroonian fighters will use the opportunity to establish a foothold in the city. Residents of the city therefore have an interest to respect ghost town orders from the Southern Cameroons Interim Government that is widely considered as the legitimate authority in region.

For Southern Cameroons’ rural areas, life has become a tough interminable challenge. Schools have been closed for two years and the kids are gradually coming to terms with the fact that theirs will be a kingdom of illiteracy. Teachers have fled the villages and the make-shift infrastructure that was passing off as schools is crumbling at break-neck speed.

Today, most young men in Southern Cameroon’s rural areas have taken up residence in the jungles that offer more peace than their villages. Most of them are willingly joining the ragtag Southern Cameroonian Liberation Army that comprises many armed groups, some of which are turning their guns against their own brothers in arms.

As the fighting rages on, the Yaoundé government remains stubborn to appeals for a peaceful resolution. The government is wont to using unorthodox means to address its problems. It is therefore challenging for it to listen to even the voice of wisdom.

Ever since the crisis erupted, the country’s president, Paul Biya, also known as the owner of the country, has refused to listen to many respectable people across the world.

The Pope has had an opportunity to talk to Mr. Biya. Leaders of Western countries have advised him to pursue dialogue as a sure means out of the impasse. The African Union has offered to mediate. But all their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

The Francophonie, for its part, is still prepared to play a great role in efforts at restoring peace to the country, but the country’s authorities are reluctant to accept all these offers of assistance and this is causing the situation to spiral out of control.

Mr. Biya and his collaborators have clearly opted to pursue a path that is causing the country to lose its youthful population. They seem to be frozen in time and their strong faith in old ways is putting the country in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons.

Across the country, some religious authorities have also called on the government to embrace dialogue in order to spare the country the agony it is going through. But all the wise counsel does not seem to be music to the government’s ears.

Recently, it was the U.S. Ambassador who delivered his government’s bold message to the country’s ailing president. Americans have clearly indicated that it is time for Mr. Biya to exit the political arena as his presence is only fanning embers of war. They hold that Mr. Biya should be focusing on his legacy rather than on holding power.

In their view, Cameroon’s political mess cannot be cleaned up by those who have created it. It is time for the old guard to yield the floor to a new crop of politicians who will place the people’s interest at the center of their actions. Mr. Biya and his entourage belong to the past, a past that has been characterized by corruption, injustice and arrogance.

Instead of taking such wise counsel seriously, the government instead sent its surrogates to TV and radio stations where they rained insults on the U.S. ambassador who was simply delivering a friendly message. Some of the surrogates even intimidated on national TV that they would kill the U.S. ambassador.

Strangely, none of those who uttered such irresponsible statements have been arrested for threatening a foreign dignitary with diplomatic immunity in Cameroon. To the Yaoundé regime, the U.S. ambassador was interfering in its internal affairs. But the U.S. government will not be interfering in Cameroon’s affairs when it grants the impoverished Central African country weapons and financial assistance to fight Boko Haram insurgents in the country’s northern region.

Right from the beginning of the crisis, the Biya regime has not really come out with a clear plan to address the legitimate demands of Southern Cameroonians. On the contrary, it has been seeking ways and means to distract and intimidate Southern Cameroonians.

The massive arrest of innocent civilians and the kidnapping of Southern Cameroonian leaders in Nigeria are among the strategies the government has used to prove that it has the ability and capability to lay to rest a rebellion that is proving that it will stand the test of time.

This week, it has come up with a new distraction which, in its view, will help to calm down tempers. It has announced the holding of presidential election in the first week of October 2018 in the hope that Cameroonians will rush to the polls. But presidential elections will not cut it. Mr. Biya, the most hated and corrupt Cameroonian, will surely be his party’s flag-bearer despite the wise counsel given to him by Americans and this will make the whole process predictable.

But Cameroonians will not be deceived. Elections during Mr. Biya’s time have been anything but transparent and fair. The 85-year-old Biya has total mastery of the electoral process. He has appointed his cronies to the election-organizing body and, being an iron fist in a velvet glove, he will be working through his crude territorial administration minister, Atanga Nji, to intimidate Senior Divisional Officers for them to do all they can for Mr. Biya to win the election.

Indeed, the results of the election are a foregone conclusion. While the opposition is still struggling to put its house together, Mr. Biya is already rolling out his malicious plan. The opposition is divided and some of the opposition party leaders are just too hungry to the point where they just want to get to the corridors of power.

A few opposition leaders do have some political cloud and popularity, but their chances of beating the corrupt Biya are slim. The Social Democratic Front, SDF, has a presidential candidate who understands the issues and is very engaging. Joshua Osih, considered as a candidate of the future, is currently in the United States to talk with Southern Cameroonian Diaspora.

He understands the Diaspora has a lot of influence on the population. Besides, he knows it is the Diaspora’s money that is helping the pool of willing Southern Cameroonian fighters to give the Biya regime a run for its money. A native of the South West region, Joshua Osih is considered by many at home and abroad as the person who may help to keep the country united within a federal structure, after all, his party has always called for Cameroon to be federal. But will the angry Southern Cameroonians listen to him?

Southern Cameroonians want to walk away from a fake marriage that has brought them a lot of pain and suffering. To them, federalism belongs to the past. They have been arrested and killed by the Yaoundé government for calling for federalism. For now, their mind is on seceding and this will imply walking away with about 60% of the country’s wealth. Southern Cameroons is blessed with many resources, including oil, gas, diamond and timber. Its rich sub-soil has brought lots of economic benefits to the country. For almost 50 years, the Rio Del Rey estuary has been the source of more than 90% and at times 100% of all the country’s hydrocarbons, specifically oil.

Over the years, Cameroon has exported over US$5.88 billion worth of crude oil and other petroleum products per year and most of this money has never trickled down to the South-west region where the oil fields and refinery are located. The people of this region have been living in abject poverty, while the Yaoundé regime has been feasting. This is one of the many bones of contention that are threatening to tear the country apart.

Another candidate in the election is Barrister Akere Muna. A bright lawyer whose work both at home and abroad has made many people to take him seriously. He is bilingual and he understands the corrupt system that has brought death and destruction to the country. But the sins of his father are clearly working against him.

His father, Solomon Tandeng Muna, a one-time speaker of the House of Assembly and John Ngu Foncha, former vice-president, were those who spearheaded the movement for reunification of the two Cameroons. They both benefited from the system and made life easy for their children while the majority of Southern Cameroonians have been languishing in abject poverty.

Barrister Akere Muna may be a native of Southern Cameroons, but his father’s role in the disaster that has and is still visiting Southern Cameroons makes it hard for him to be that person who will deliver Southern Cameroons from its damnation.

In the South West region in particular, his name casts more doubts than hope. Reunification brought untold hardship to South West politicians such as N.N. Mbile, Chief Nyenty of Bachou Ntai, Chief Ayamba, Dr. E.M.L. Endeley and others who died in abject poverty due to the dirty politics Muna and Foncha played to the detriment of the South West region.

Muna and Foncha will never be forgiven in this part of the country, although both had openly apologized for their errors in 1993 during the All Anglophone Conference held in Buea.

Cameroon is going down the drain. This country can only be saved if there is an inclusive and sincere dialogue. Mr. Biya and his cohorts are still stuck in the past. They still hold that Cameroonians are stupid and will not remember the past. They are still getting it wrong. Cameroon is sitting on a keg of gun powder. The international community still has time to defuse this ticking time bomb before it goes off.

Presidential elections may be good, but in this context, they will not bring any meaningful change to the country. The voters’ registration process has been flawed right from the beginning. In the two English-speaking regions, there was virtually no registration. With the violence that is playing out in these two regions and the frustration in the French-speaking part of the country, it is clear that Cameroon is walking down the path of a national political disaster. The world has to stop Biya before he destroys Cameroon.

Mr. Biya should be dragged to the negotiating table. Solutions to Cameroon’s numerous problems could be found at the negotiating table. The world will forever be guilty if it allows Cameroon to implode. Mr. Biya and his collaborators have no intention of addressing the economic and political issues that are undermining the country’s development efforts. It is time to take the right decision. The world cannot continue to stand on the sidelines while Cameroonians kill each other.

By Kingsley Betek and Irene Nanyongo on assignment in Washington, D.C., United States of America

President Biya now has an opportunity to announce significant reforms that could help him get a respectable exit from the Cameroon political scene and de-escalate tensions with Southern Cameroonians.

The 85 year-old monstrous liability of a head of state is due to meet with the US and French ambassadors to discuss the way forward for the crumbling nation and the Interim Government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia will be watching for remarks on the war in Southern Cameroons that has claimed the lives of more than one thousand Ambazonians.

It’s hoped Biya will say something specific enough and tangible enough to give Ambassador Peter Barlerin of the United States and French chief diplomat Gilles Thibault confidence that he will be stepping down as president of the republic and that negotiations will begin with Southern Cameroons leadership soonest.

Our senior correspondent in Yaoundé who contributed to this report said the question on the table is how big the Biya reform package will be and how specific it will be vis-à-vis the war in Southern Cameroons.

French President Macron has reportedly made a dramatic u turn after pressure came from the Trump administration and Paris has dispatched the French Secretary of State at the Ministry of European and Foreign Affairs to Cameroon to discuss the war in Southern Cameroons with French Cameroun authorities.

Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne has been quoted as saying that confidence building measures between Francophones and Anglophones are necessary at this time to de-escalate the tensions. Washington has long pressed Biya to step aside honorably or face devastating consequences. Not only will Biya resigning help heal the Southern Cameroons-French Cameroun relationship; it will also benefit the one and indivisible Cameroon theory.

A well-placed source deep within the Francophone regime in Yaoundé hinted this reporter on Thursday that Biya will begin with reforms aimed at getting a new head of state because it is the right thing to do.

Biya’s previous calls for dialogue and the so-called humanitarian package have all been described as a little bit too little.  The United States is seeking immediate action from Biya that goes beyond fake promises of dialogue and aid to Ambazonians.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Cameroon Concord News Group

Relations between Russia and the US are not in the “best state” these days, Russian President Vladimir Putin has told visiting US National Security Adviser John Bolton, citing the ongoing political discord in America as the main reason.

The parties expressed their willingness to search for ways to enhance bilateral relations.

“Unfortunately, I have to say that Russian-US relations are not in their best state now,” Putin said at a meeting with Bolton at the Kremlin on Wednesday. “I have said this in public on many occasions, I would like to repeat at this meeting with you. I believe that to a great extent this is the result of a bitter internal political struggle in the US.”

The Russian head of state expressed hope that the visit would pave the way for restoring ties.

“Your visit to Moscow provides us with hope that we will be able to take at least the initial steps towards restoring full-fledged relations between our countries,” Putin said. “Russia has never sought confrontation.”

Ties between the Kremlin and the White House have fallen to a new low under US President Donald Trump.

US intelligence services have accused Russia of cyber interference in America’s democratic process, specially during the 2016 presidential face-off between Trump and his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.

Trump, who has been willing to extend ties with Moscow, is currently the subject of a high-profile investigation for alleged “collusion” with the Kremlin.

Moscow and Washington have also clashed on a range of other issues, including the war in Syria, the Ukraine conflict and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

Putin told Bolton that both sides should explore ways “to mend full-fledged relations based on equality and respect for each other’s interests.”

Trump’s national security advisor said he wanted to discuss boosting Russian-US cooperation in the areas where both sides see eye to eye.

Hailing Putin’s summit with Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Germany in July last year, Bolton assured the Russian leader that Trump was committed to improving ties.

Earlier in the day, Bolton sat down for talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a meeting that revolved around bilateral ties.

“The parties held an exchange of opinions on the topical issues of the international agenda, including the situation around Syria and in Ukraine,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“Considerable attention was paid to the issues of bilateral relations,” it added.
Source: Presstv

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States stays committed to talks with North Korea but will “reassess” all ties if North Korea leader Kim Jong-un fails to deliver on denuclearization promises that he made to President Donald Trump.

Speaking to CNN in a phone interview on Monday, the top US diplomat said both sides were working together to achieve what Kim and Trump agreed upon during their historic summit on June 12 in Singapore.

“I am not going to put a timeline on it, whether that’s two months, six months, we are committed to moving forward in an expeditious moment to see if we can achieve what both leaders set out to do,” Pompeo said.

Pompeo emphasized that future of the talks depended on Pyongyang’s steps towards nuclear disarmament and Washington would “constantly reassess” progress in this regard.

In exchange for Kim’s promise to dismantle his nuclear weapons program, Trump has put on hold joint military drills with South Korea and Japan off the Korean Peninsula.

“The President was clear. Each of the actions we have taken, his decision to suspend the high level war games, it’s only so long as there is a good faith negotiation progress, productive results being achieved,” Pompeo said.

“If we can’t do that, if it turns out that there is no capacity to deliver the outcome that both presidents said they wanted, yeah, we reassess,” he added.

‘Unequivocal’ Kim

Pompeo claimed that Kim sounded “unequivocal” on denuclearization both during the Trump meeting and before that, when he personally met the North Korean leader as CIA director.

“I heard it myself when I visited there as CIA director, I heard it myself when I visited Pyongyang as Secretary of State and I heard it again where there was a group together with the President and Chairman Kim,” he said.

Pompeo said it was too soon to expect a clear roadmap for ending decades of tensions between the two sides, but they were on the right track.

“So long as that commitment stays in place, the United States is prepared to do exactly what the president said,” the state secretary added.

Despite the new developments, Washington has made it clear that it won’t lift tough economic sanctions against Pyongyang until its complete denuclearization.

Source: Presstv