The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Trump and Kim fly in for ‘historic’ first meeting
US and North Korean leaders prepare to hold talks in Singapore
US President Donald Trump has landed in Singapore, joining North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the island city-state ahead of a meeting meant to settle a standoff over Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal.
Air Force One touched down at a military air base, travelling from Canada, where Mr Trump had attended a meeting of the G7.
Hours earlier, a jet carrying Mr Kim landed, and after shaking hands with the Singapore foreign minister, Mr Kim sped through the city’s streets in a limousine, two large North Korean flags fluttering on the bonnet, surrounded by other black vehicles with tinted windows and bound for the luxurious and closely guarded St Regis Hotel.
Mr Kim smiled broadly as he met with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
“The entire world is watching the historic summit between (North Korea) and the United States of America, and thanks to your sincere efforts ... we were able to complete the preparations for the historic summit,” Mr Kim told Mr Lee through an interpreter.
Mr Trump is due to meet with Mr Lee today.
The US president has said he hopes to win a legacy-making deal with the North to give up their nuclear weapons, though he has recently sought to manage expectations, saying that it may take more than one meeting.
The North, many experts believe, stands on the brink of being able to target the entire US mainland with its nuclear-armed missiles, and while there is deep scepticism that Mr Kim will quickly give up those hard-won nuclear weapons, there is also some hope that diplomacy can replace the animosity between the US and the North.
This will be the first summit of its kind between a leader of North Korea and a sitting US president.
The North has faced crippling diplomatic and economic sanctions as it has advanced development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
The North Korean autocrat’s every move will be followed by 3,000 journalists who have converged on Singapore up until he shakes hands with Mr Trump tomorrow.
It is a reflection of the intense global curiosity over Mr Kim’s sudden turn to diplomacy in recent months after a series of North Korean nuclear and missile tests last year raised fears of war.