The year 2017 saw North Korea threaten the U.S. with nuclear Armageddon as Pyongyang successfully tested nuclear missiles and inter-continental ballistic missiles. Four months into 2018, the U.S. and North Korea seem to be on the road for a historic summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. In line with recent revelations by the U.S. President that CIA Director Mike Pompeo was in Pyongyang for a secret meeting to set the grounds for talks between him and Trump, Kim Jong-un made a stunning announcement today of halting all missile testing and shutting down a nuclear site.

"From April 21, North Korea will stop nuclear tests and launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles," the Korean Central News Agency said.

The announcement by the KCNA was soon followed by a tweet by Donald Trump, who said, “North Korea has agreed to suspend all Nuclear Tests and close up a major test site," he tweeted. "This is very good news for North Korea and the World - big progress! Look forward to our Summit."

Trump’s tweet all but confirming that he would be meeting Kim Jong-un in the near future. Kim’s announcement also comes just 48 hours after Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in Florida for a Japan-U.S. summit during which he stated that halting missile testing by North Korea was an important criteria that Pyongyang should meet before Trump met with him.

The change in North Korea's policy was announced to its citizens via state news agency KCNA. It published a list of six points that emphasized the country had achieved its nuclear objectives.

  • "We declare solemnly that we faithfully realized the nuclear weaponization"

  • "The nuclear test site in northern area will be discarded"

  • "(It's an) important process for global nuclear disarmament"

  • "We will never use nuclear weapons unless there is a nuclear threat or nuclear provocation to our country"

  • Commitment to "dramatically raise people's lives"

  • North Korea "will intensify close ties and dialogue"

Kim Jong-un’s announcement is being analysed as “coming to the negotiation table from a position of strength” as the country seems to have achieved its objective of possessing a nuclear weapon as it reportedly tested a hydrogen bomb in September last year along with successfully testing a new intercontinental ballistic missile it said could reach the entire U.S. mainland. A former CIA analyst working on North Korea said on CNN that, “the U.S. government while negotiating with Kim has to understand what is it that he wants for him to come to the negotiating table.”

The latest announcement comes during a thawing of relations between North and South Korea. A telephone hotline has been set up between Kim and his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae Kim, and the two leaders are scheduled to meet next week for the first inter-Korean summit in over a decade.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 21, 2018 06:27 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).