Vietnam prepares to host Trump-Kim summit
VIETNAMESE OFFICIALS are scrambling to finish preparations for a rushed summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump that will capture global attention.
Officials in Hanoi said they had about 10 days to prepare for the summit – much less than the nearly two months they said Singapore was given for the first Trump-Kim meeting last year – but still vowed to provide airtight security for the two leaders.
“Security will be at the maximum level,” Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung told reporters at a briefing meant to showcase the nation’s efforts to welcome Mr Kim and Mr Trump.
Nguyen Manh Hung, leader of the Information Ministry, said the 3,000 journalists from 40 countries expected in Hanoi could rely on his agency as “you’d count on a family member”.
The world will be watching as Mr Trump and Mr Kim deal with one of Asia’s biggest security challenges: North Korea’s pursuit of a nuclear programme that stands on the verge of viably threatening any target on the planet.
Although many experts are sceptical that Mr Kim will give up the nuclear weapons he probably sees as his best guarantee of continued rule, there was a palpable, carnival-like excitement among many in Hanoi as the final preparations were put in place.
T-shirts were being sold bearing Mr Kim’s face along with the phrase Rocket Man, a nod to the insulting nickname Mr Trump gave him in 2017, when North Korean weapons tests and backand-forth threats by the leaders had many fearing war.
Youngsters dressed in traditional Korean Hanbok were practising songs meant to welcome Mr Kim. Grinning tourists were posing in front of the hundreds of US and North Korean flags around the city.
The ultra-tight security will be appreciated by North Korean authorities, who are extremely vigilant about the safety of Mr Kim.
Mr Kim’s decision to travel to Vietnam by train, not by plane, may have been influenced by better ability to control security.