Trump's moves to salvage nuclear talks amid threats from North Korea draw rebukes from Bolton and Biden

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is facing mounting criticism that his administration is bowing to pressure tactics from North Korea in a desperate attempt to resuscitate moribund nuclear talks ahead of a year-end deadline from leader Kim Jong Un's regime.

"Trump again coddled a dictator - blocking a UN meeting on North Korea human rights, betraying our values," Mr Biden wrote on Twitter.The State Department said the United States is seeking an alternative meeting at the UN this week that would offer a comprehensive update on North Korea's recent missile launches and provocative behaviour.

But US-North Korea talks have been dormant since a working-level meeting in October in Stockholm ended with North's top negotiator, Mr Kim Miyong Gil, pronouncing his side"very displeased" because the dialogue had"not fulfilled our expectations". Mr Wit, now a senior fellow at the Stimson Centre and director of 38 North, a website focused on North Korea policy, said that Mr Trump and his team"still want to play this out to the end and they have the idea that diplomacy still may be salvaged. Is it worth starting to pivot now because of an upcoming human rights meeting or picking another opportunity?"

As recently as last Friday, some Trump administration officials were signalling support for the UN meeting,"with the caveat that the White House might change its mind", said Mr Greg Scarlatoiu, executive director of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea.

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