Kerry Wants Korea Talks; North Disses 'Crafty Trick'

John Kerry is on the ground today in Japan, continuing his Asian tour and vowing that North Korea will find "ready partners" in new talks with the United States, even as Pyongyang continues to seethe. Kerry and Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida called on the North to first honor its previous nuclear deals, reports the AP, to avoid "simply repeating the cycle of the past years." Pyongyang is apparently unimpressed, adds Sky News; it today dismissed Seoul's earlier calls for talks as a "crafty trick."

"The US will do what is necessary to defend our allies against these provocations, but our choice is to negotiate," said Kerry, according to the BBC. The US-Japan meeting comes on the heels of Pyongyang's threat to strike Tokyo; experts are predicting the North could take action tomorrow, on what would have been the 101st birthday of founder Kim Il Sung. Japan is Kerry's final stop in Asia. Meanwhile, on the trivial diplomacy front: Cheeky rapper PSY taunted the North, saying he hopes the regime enjoys his new video, "Gentleman." (More John Kerry stories.)