he think it's early to draw conclusions at this point. >> it could be a good sign that north korea wants to engage. >> perhaps. i know some are speculating this may be their first effort to open a channel. but as you know, we've had channels open to north korea for some time. they do know how to reach us if and when they're ready to engage, as well. >> explain to us what the policy is on north korea. do the north koreans have to give up their nuclear program before committing to talks? >> our policy is the complete verifiable irreversible denuclearzation of the korean peninsula. that is a policy commonly held by everyone in the region, as well. the chinese and russia have it as a stated policy. regionally, all the countries in the neighboring area as well as the international community are well aligned on the policy. how we achieve the ultimate endpoint, the final full