KIM ON TRAIN TO HANOI

His late father, grandfather also took epic train trips when they were leaders

NORTH Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s armoured train chugged across China yesterday as he headed to his second summit with United States President Donald Trump in Vietnam.

Emulating his late father and grandfather, who took epic train trips when they were leaders, Jong-un set off on the long journey from Pyongyang railway station on Saturday, with a military honour guard seeing him off.

His departure was confirmed by the North’s official KCNA news agency, with images showing citizens cheering him as he waved from the train before what could be a 60-hour journey to Vietnam.

The train crossed the border city of Dandong later that day, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency and the specialist outlet NK News, but its route remained a secret.

This follows days of speculation over Jong-un’s travel plans, as his team gathered in Hanoi ahead of the talks expected on Wednesday and Thursday.

Security was tight before the train’s arrival in Dandong, with police cordoning off the border bridge area with tape and metal barriers. A hotel facing the bridge was closed for impromptu renovations on Saturday.

The train’s windows were blacked out, a source said, with only headlights on as it crossed.

The train usually takes 13 hours to reach Beijing, but there were no signs of heightened security at the railway station yesterday, indicating the train likely bypassed the city on the nearly 4,000km journey to Vietnam.