Abe Commends Trump Over North Korea Summit
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has commended US President Donald Trump’s “courage” in agreeing to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for a summit.
He was speaking at the start of a visit to Mr Trump at his retreat in Florida, where the two men are also expected to discuss trade. There have been fears in Tokyo that Mr Trump’s plans for bilateral talks could sideline Japan, a key US ally. Relations between the two men appeared cordial.
It is the second time Mr Trump has welcomed Mr Abe to his Mar-aLago resort and it is probable they will fit in another round of golf, a shared passion.
It is a break for the two men who are both battling pressure at home, with Mr Abe facing cronyism claims while Mr Trump is fighting allegations of election meddling by Russia in his favour. “Japan and ourselves are locked and we are very unified on the subject of North Korea,” Mr Trump said.
“We will probably be, depending on various meetings and conversations, we’ll be having meetings with Kim Jong-un very soon. It’ll be taking place probably in early June or a little before that.”
Five locations are being considered for the historic meeting, he said without giving details. The Japanese PM has repeatedly sought to portray a close personal relationship with Mr Trump and was the first foreign leader to meet him in New York after his election victory in 2016. Apart from Florida, the pair have met in Japan.
But Washington’s policies since then have put pressure on what is meant to be a special relationship. On North Korea, Mr Trump surprised the international community by accepting Pyongyang’s suggestion for direct talks.
While details of those talks are still uncertain, it is an unprecedented step by a sitting president to meet a North Korean leader. Observers say Mr Abe’s goal for his US trip will be to persuade the US president as much as he can not to sway from the West’s hard line on Pyongyang.