Venue set for KoreaUS summit

WASHINGTON/SINGAPORE: The summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jongun will be on Singapore’s southern island of Sentosa, the White House said yesterday as preparations accelerated for next week’s event.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders tweeted that the venue would be the Capella Hotel on Sentosa and thanked Singaporeans for their hospitality. The summit is scheduled to start on the morning of June 12.

Trump told reporters at an Oval Office event that plans for what will be the first meeting between a serving US president and a North Korean leader were ‘‘moving along very well’’.

He said one thing that could come out of the summit was an agreement formally ending the 195053 Korean War, which was concluded with only a truce, not a peace treaty.

Former US officials and analysts say that if the meeting produces a peace declaration, Trump might have a headline grabbing, madeforTV moment on the world stage.

But they say the public relations value of such a historic event could quickly fade if Trump fails, in return, to wring any significant concessions from Kim on the dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal.

Singapore airspace will be restricted during the summit, according to a notice to airmen posted yesterday.

The notice, published on the websites of the International Civil Aviation Organisation and the US Federal Aviation Administration, said air space over Singapore would be temporarily restricted for parts of June 11, 12 and 13.

All aircraft arriving at Changi Airport would be required to reduce speed and face restrictions on runway use ‘‘for reasons of national security’’.

A separate notice on the ICAO website warned aviators to keep clear of the Paya Lebar Air Base, a military facility in the island’s east that has been used by US presidents on past visits.