North Korea willing to talk denuclearisation, U.S Officials confirm
Washington, April 9: North Korea has confirmed to the US that it is willing to negotiate about the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, clearing the way for a summit meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump, US officials said.
"The US has confirmed that Kim Jong-un is willing to discuss the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula," said a senior administration official on Sunday. A second official also confirmed that Pyongyang representatives had delivered a direct message to Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported.
At the same time, US officials cautioned that Pyongyang offered no details about its negotiating position and noted that North Korea has violated past agreements during the George W. Bush administration to freeze its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes.
It was unclear what kind of concessions the US would be willing to make to secure commitments from Pyongyang.
The unprecedented summit is slated to happen in May and will be the first time a sitting US President would meet the leader of North Korea. Preparations for the meeting included secret, direct talks with North Korea, Trump administration officials were cited as saying by the New York Times.
US and North Korean intelligence officials reportedly spoke many times and met in a third country.
Meanwhile, South and North Korea will also be holding a summit on April 27, the first meeting between the leaders of the two sides in 11 years.
Word of Kim's willingness to talk about denuclearisation came the day before John R. Bolton, who has made the legal case for a pre-emptive attack on North Korea, was to officially begin work as Trump's new National Security Adviser.
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Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi appeals to youths to join civil defence units as volunteers
Bhubaneswar, May 11 (PTI): Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi appealed to youths on Sunday to join civil defence organisations as volunteers to serve the country.
The youths represent hope, strength, and trust of the nation, he said, and urged them to come forward to join the civil defence organisations with the spirit of nationalism.
In a video message, Majhi said, "The security of the lives and property of the common people of the country is the responsibility of all of us. Security and service are our top responsibilities. Therefore, I appeal to all people, especially youths, to join civil defence organisations as volunteers..
The interested youths can apply to the district collectors to join the civil defence organisations, he said, adding that the collectors are the controllers of civil defence at the district level.
Majhi said training will be provided to the volunteers, and if needed, they will be mobilised to serve the public with the spirit of nationalism.
At present, civil defence units are functioning at 12 places in the state.
"I have instructed officials to establish new such units as per requirement," the chief minister said.
Majhi also expressed hopes that many young people will come forward to join the civil defence organisations with a spirit of service and nationalism.
In a related development, the chief minister has congratulated Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the inauguration of the BrahMos missile manufacturing facility in Lucknow.
"This milestone will give a major boost to Bharat's defence capabilities and strengthen our journey towards self-reliance in defence production. Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji's visionary leadership continues to propel India towards #AtmanirbharBharat in defence and beyond," Mjahi wrote on X.
