TOKYO -- North Korea said Thursday recent comments by U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence were "stupid" and "ignorant" and again warned it was willing to pull out of a planned summit between leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Choe Son Hui, the vice minister of foreign affairs, was quoted Thursday by the North's state-run news agency slamming comments Pence made in an interview with Fox News that compared North Korea to Libya, saying they showed that he does not understand North Korea's situation.
She also questioned whether the summit, scheduled for June 12 in Singapore, would be worthwhile if the remarks reflect Washington's position.
"We will neither beg the U.S. for dialogue nor take the trouble to persuade them if they do not want to sit together with us" KCNA quoted her as saying. "Whether the U.S. will meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown is entirely dependent upon the decision and behaviour of the United States."
Trump met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday at the White House for consultations and suggested the summit could be delayed. But the U.S. says it is still working on making the historic summit happen.
