Washington (AFP) – The United States said Friday it believes North Korea may be preparing a nuclear test as soon as this month, its first since 2017, and renewed an offer of dialogue on ratcheting tensions. The State Department went public with its assessment amid mounting US frustration with North Korea, which has conducted 14 weapons tests since January. “The United States assesses that the DPRK is preparing its Punggye-ri test site and could be ready to test there as early as this month,” State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said, referring to North Korea by its official name, …

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