"Whatever Kim says about his desire for denuclearization, North Korea continues to produce and deploy nuclear armed missiles," he told CNN.

US military officials have put the brakes on a proposed rail project that would connect the Korean Peninsula, underscoring growing differences between Washington and Seoul on engagement with the hermit kingdom.

Their dramatic meeting comes weeks before Kim is due to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in what would be the first ever meeting between sitting leaders of the two countries.

A MEETING between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is looking more likely after reports emerged that the regime was prepared to discuss denuclearisation.

FOLLOWING US President Donald Trump’s surprise decision to meet with North Korea, Kim Jong-un tells South Korean Foreign Minister he’s ‘taking stock.’

South Korea's National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong said President Donald Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un will meet by May this year. (March 8) AP

The two leaders met for the first time and their talks lasted almost three hours.

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin says Moscow is opposed to any new countries acquiring nuclear weapons, but that the world should talk to North Korea rather than threaten it.

South Korea's new President Moon Jae-in has been sworn in, vowing to address the economy and relations with the North in his first speech as president.

Under the clear sky and to the sound of the military band, dozens of military vehicles and an entire army of soldiers passed through the country’s biggest square named in honor of Kim Il-sung, whose 105th birthday is being celebrated on Saturday.

North Korea's army on Friday vowed a 'merciless' response to any US provocation, as tensions soar over Pyongyang's nuclear program and speculation mounts that it is preparing a fresh weapons test.