TENSIONS
The delegation from North Korea arrived in Sweden on Thursday. Analysts have said both countries' leaders had growing incentives to reach a deal, but it was unclear if common ground could be found after months of tension and deadlock.
The readout from the talks did not sound very promising, said Jenny Town, a managing editor at 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea project.
"I think (North Korea's) expectations were too high that the removal of Bolton would provide more flexibility on what the U.S. wants as initial steps," she said, referring to Trump's hardline former aide John Bolton, abruptly fired last month amid disagreements on how to tackle foreign policy challenges.
"While certainly it removes some pressure for an all or nothing deal, it seems the gap between what the two sides want as a baseline and are willing to reciprocate still has not narrowed," Town added.
Only a day after announcing the new talks, North Korea said it had test-fired a new ballistic missile designed for submarine launch, underscoring the need for Washington to move quickly to negotiate limits on Pyongyang's growing arsenal.
Speaking in Athens on a tour of southern Europe while the talks were still underway, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said he was hopeful of progress.
"We are mindful this will be the first time that we've had a chance to have a discussion in quite some time and that there remains to be a lot of work that will have to be done by the two teams," he told a news conference.
