Washington (CNN) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said North Korea is "of course" closer to denuclearization, but he acknowledged it will take some time before that happens and said the schedule for divesting the country of its missiles and weapons would be set by Kim Jong Un.

"Of course, we're closer," Pompeo said in an interview Friday with Channel NewsAsia in Singapore when asked if the summit between Kim and President Donald Trump has brought denuclearization closer.

But earlier, on his way to Singapore, Pompeo had acknowledged to reporters that Kim is behaving in a "manner inconsistent" with international calls for him to set aside his nuclear program.

"Chairman Kim made a commitment to denuclearize. The world demanded that he do so in the UN Security Council resolutions. To the extent they are behaving in a manner inconsistent with that, they are in violation of one or both of the UN Security Council resolutions," Pompeo said. "We can see we still have a ways to go to achieve the ultimate outcome we're looking for."

'The decision is his'

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