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Some reports have indicated that the sister of North Korean President Kim Jong Un threatened the United States and South Korea for holding joint military exercises. Now, North Korea has fired short-range missiles this past weekend. Two senior Biden administration officials also confirmed the missile tests. Point to be noted that North Korea has ignored offers from the Biden administration to resume negotiations. Last week, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pressed China to use its tremendous influence to convince North Korea to abandon its nuclear program. However, the officials sought to downplay the significance of the missile tests. They pointed out that they are not covered by UN Security Council resolutions meant to deter North Korea from pursuing a nuclear program.

It is noteworthy that relations between the United States and North Korea once hailed as potentially promising have been tense with no substantive contact for more than a year, after former President Donald Trump’s 3 meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The last face-to-face talks between senior officials from both countries were held in Sweden in October 2019. The Biden administration’s efforts to resume a dialogue have been rebuffed since February. North Korea hasn’t conducted nuclear or long-range missile tests since Trump’s first meeting with Kim in Singapore in 2018. However, analysts believe they have pressed ahead with their programs on both.

Point to be noted that North Korea has not given up short- and medium-range missile testing. One of the senior Biden administration officials said that North Korean officials have not been in contact with the officials of the US government in more than a year, spanning 2 administrations. The officials of the Biden administration have been consulting with the officials of the Trump administration who took part in the Singapore talks as well as a second meeting between Kim and Trump in February 2019. The official also said that the Biden administration does not view the weekend’s missile tests as closing that door to such talks.