Secretary of state Mike Pompeo said North Korea will not see any sanctions relief until the country denuclearises, undercutting Pyongyang’s suggestion that Donald Trump had agreed to ease economic restrictions.

The top US diplomat clarified America’s position as he conferred with South Korean and Japanese officials after Mr Trump’s high-stakes met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a high-stakes effort to convince Mr Kim to scrap his country’s nuclear programme.

After that meeting, North Korean state media said Mr Trump had agreed to lift economic sanctions. But Mr Pompeo shot down that claim, signaling that America would continue to hew to its “maximum pressure” campaign of choking sanctions until Pyongyang had verifiably dismantled its arsenal.

“We are going to get denuclearisation”, Mr Pompeo said, adding that “only then will there be relief from the sanctions.”

A joint statement released by Mr Trump and Mr Kim after their meeting pledged that North Korea would “work toward complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula”. Mr Pompeo said he expected North Korea to take steps towards denuclearisation over the remainder of Mr Trump’s current four-year term.

Administration officials credit a concerted international effort to isolate North Korea and stifle its economy as a key factor in bringing Pyongyang to the negotiating table.

North Korea Military Parade Show all 6 1 /6 North Korea Military Parade North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, a military parade is held at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade This screen grab taken from North Korea's KCTV on February 8, 2018 shows members of North Korea's military taking part in a parade, with missiles being displayed, in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. North Korea staged a military parade in Pyongyang on February 8 to mark the 70th anniversary of its armed forces, in a show of strength just a day before the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games open in the South. / AFP PHOTO / KCTV / KCTV / -----EDITORS NOTE --- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / KCTV" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVESKCTV/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT, North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, inspects honor guards, along with his wife Ri Sol Ju, center, during a military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, watches the military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade This screen grab taken from North Korea's KCTV on February 8, 2018 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaking during a military parade in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. North Korea staged a military parade in Pyongyang on February 8 to mark the 70th anniversary of its armed forces, in a show of strength just a day before the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games open in the South. / AFP PHOTO / KCTV / KCTV / -----EDITORS NOTE --- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / KCTV" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVESKCTV/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images

While the Trump administration has rejected the notion of imminently lifting sanctions, Mr Trump offered a key concession in saying America would suspend joint military exercises that the North has long denounced as a prelude to an invasion.

South Korean officials who met with Mr Pompeo hailed the summit for bringing the world back from the brink of potential armed conflict. President Moon Jae-in said the meeting helped shift “from the era of hostility towards the era of dialogue, of peace and prosperity”.

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