The US is in "direct contact" with North Korea amid the nuclear stand-off between the two countries, secretary of state Rex Tillerson has said.

Mr Tillerson said "lines of communications" were being used and the US was "probing" the possibility of more formal talks with Pyongyang, adding: "Stay tuned."

The statement is the first confirmation that backchannel discussions have been taking place as North Korea's nuclear tests and a war of words between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un have sparked fears of a military conflict.

Mr Tillerson was speaking in China, where he is hoping to encourage President Xi Jinping to implement recently agreed UN sanctions against North Korea.

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He said: "We have lines of communication with Pyongyang. We're not in a dark situation, a blackout, we have a couple, three channels open to Pyongyang."


According to the US State Department, North Korea has shown no indication they are interested in, or ready for, talks about denuclearisation.

The US has not ruled out the use of force to compel Pyongyang to halt missile and nuclear tests, and last week Mr Trump threatened to "totally destroy" the country.

But privately, senior figures admit the military options do not look promising, with South Korea's densely populated capital Seoul in range of the North's artillery.

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Mr Tillerson has been a proponent of a campaign of "peaceful pressure", using US and UN sanctions and working with China to turn up pressure on the regime.

But his efforts have been overshadowed by an extraordinary war of words, with Mr Trump mocking North Korea's leade ras "little Rocket Man" and Mr Kim branding the US President a "dotard".

Just last month, Mr Trump appeared to rule out getting round a table with Pyongyang, tweeting that "talking is not the answer".

Even as Mr Tillerson met China's top diplomats, North Korea's state media produced a new barrage of insults.

A statement branded Mr Trump an "old psychopath" bent on the "suicidal act of inviting a nuclear disaster that will reduce America to a sea of flames".

The US secretary of state suggested the key to easing diplomatic tensions was putting an end to Mr Kim's missile tests.

He said: "The whole situation is a bit overheated right now. I think everyone would like for it to calm down.

"I think if North Korea would stop firing all the missiles, that would calm down things a lot."