AS IF

Obama Dismisses N. Korea Nuke Proposal

Says U.S. not taking offer seriously.

President Barack Obama dismissed North Korea’s proposal to halt its nuclear tests if the United States ended its annual military exercises with South Korea. Obama told reporters Pyongyang would “have to do better than that.” North Korea’s foreign minister, Ri Su-yong, made the offer in an AP interview as Pyongyang said it fired a ballistic missile from a submarine off the country’s eastern coast. The United Nations condemned the test, calling it a “serious violation” of past resolutions to end Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions. Ri had told the AP that the North would not back down despite sanctions against the country. “If they believe they can actually frustrate us with sanctions, they are totally mistaken... The more pressure you put on to something, the more emotionally you react to stand up against it.”