Second summit with North Korea likely ‘quite soon’: Trump
President Donald Trump praised North Korea’s Kim Jong Un as “very open’’ and “terrific’’ Monday and announced he likely will hold a second summit with Kim “quite soon,’’ striking a far less ominous note at the United Nations about the nuclear threat from the North.
Twelve months after Trump stood at the rostrum of the U.N. General Assembly and derided Kim as “Rocket Man,’’ the push to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula is a work in progress, although fears of war have given way to dreams of rapprochement. The president’s bellicose denunciations of Pyongyang have largely given way to hopeful notes, as Trump praised Kim as “very open’’ and “terrific.’’
“It was a different world,’’ Trump said Monday of his onetime moniker for the North Korean leader. “That was a dangerous time. This is one year later, a much different time.’’
He added that preparations are underway by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for a second presidential meeting with Kim “quite soon.’’
The meeting would come despite U.S. officials assessing that the North has not followed through on its commitments to take steps toward denuclearization. Pompeo defended Trump’s decision to seek another meeting despite the slow progress. “We’ve been at this the other way an awfully long time and failed,’’ he said.
He added: “We tried to do details. We tried to do step for step. We tried to do trade for trade. Each of those failed.’’
Pompeo said, “We’re bringing the two senior leaders, the individuals who can actually make the decisions that will move this process forward,’’ in hopes they can make a breakthrough.
Trump arrived at the U.N. on Monday morning for a meeting on the global drug trade, ahead of a sit-down with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who delivered a personal message to Trump from Kim after their inter-Korean talks last week.
“You are the only person who can solve this problem,’’ Moon said to Trump, relaying Kim’s words.
Trump, for his part, said “We are in no rush. We are in no hurry’’ to bring about a nuclear agreement. U.S. officials are insisting that economic sanctions remain in place against the North until it eliminates its nuclear program.
Trump and Moon are expected to sign a new version of the U.S.South Korean trade agreement, one of Trump’s first successes in his effort to renegotiate trade deals on more favourable terms for the U.S. Even so, some U.S. officials worry that South Korea’s eagerness to restore relations with the North could reduce sanctions pressure on Kim’s government, hampering efforts to negotiate a nuclear accord.