North Korea's Kim Jong Un said there was no reason to avoid talks with the US if Washington stopped insisting his country give up nuclear weapons, but he would never abandon the nuclear arsenal to end sanctions, state media reported on Monday.

"Personally, I still have fond memories of US President (Donald) Trump," KCNA reported the North Korean leader saying in a speech at the Supreme People's Assembly on Sunday. The two leaders met three times during Trump's first presidency.

Kim's comments come as the new liberal government in Seoul urges Trump to take the lead in reopening dialogue with Kim, six years after all peace talks with Pyongyang collapsed over sanctions and nuclear dismantlement.

"If the United States drops the absurd obsession with denuclearising us and accepts reality, an

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