Senator Rounds discusses North Korea and other Senate business
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HURON – While the cancellation of the U.S.-North Korean summit that was scheduled for next month should come as no surprise, progress between the two countries has been made with the release of three hostages and Kim Jong Un has partially shut down his nuclear facilities, Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., said Thursday.
“We may be back to square one; that’s a part of it,” he said in a conference call with reporters. “You always have to be prepared to walk away from a deal.”
Rounds said he and others in the Republican conference had lunch Thursday with Vice President Mike Pence, who shared details of the North Korean leader’s provocative language and threats that led to President Trump calling off the meeting that had been scheduled for June 12 in Singapore.
“This is a case where we would most certainly prefer to have diplomatic relations to eliminate nuclear threats,” Rounds said.
Although the possibility of a future summit is unclear, sanctions against North Korea will continue as pressure is applied to the country, he said.
For North Koreans, “it’s going to be tough on them,” he said. “But we are not going to allow them to be a nuclear power.”
Asked about the president’s strategy, Rounds compared it to Trump’s real estate business, where he was always prepared to walk away from the negotiating table.