Trump, Japan’s leader meet at Mar-a-Lago
When it comes to discussing global affairs, world leaders would prefer to meet at Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump says.
The president kicked off two days of talks Tuesday with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Palm Beach.
Trump says he’ll be “sneaking out” for a round of golf this morning with Abe. The two leaders are expected to discuss trade and North Korea’s nuclear arsenal.
“Many of the world’s great leaders request to come to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach,” Trump said. “They like it. I like it. We’re comfortable.”
One world leader who likely won’t be visiting Mar-aLago is North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Trump said five sites are being considered for a meeting, but he shook his head and said “no” when asked if any of the locations are in the United States.
The summit could happen in early June “assuming things go well,” and the two nations are already talking at “very high levels,” Trump said.
Trump has made 17 visits to Mar-a-Lago since taking office, hitting the links at his nearby golf club when most of the country is dealing with frigid temperatures. The president says his estate is also an ideal site for diplomacy because world leaders “specifically request” to meet there.
Trump hosted Abe at Mar-a-Lago in February 2017. Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Trump last April in Palm Beach.
The use of Mar-a-Lago for diplomacy hasn’t been without controversy. Last year, Trump came under fire from Democratic leaders when a social media post showed the president and Abe discussing a North Korean missile launch in a crowded dining room at his club.
The two leaders and their wives dined Tuesday night at Mar-a-Lago.
As the two couples strolled at sunset along the lawn in front of the resort toward an outdoor dining area, Trump said: “We’re getting a lot of things done. A lot of great things between our two countries.”
At the dining table, Trump sat next to Abe with the first lady to his right. The prime minister’s wife sat to Abe’s left.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Trump said he has given “his blessing” to South Korea to officially end the Korean War. Fighting between the North and South Korea ended in 1953 with an armistice — not a formal peace treaty.
When Trump and Abe play golf today, first lady Melania Trump and Akie Abe, the prime minister’s wife, are expected to tour the Flagler Museum, a Gilded Age 75-room mansion completed for industrialist and railroad baron Henry Flagler in 1902.
Akie Abe visited Loggers’ Run Middle School in West Boca on Tuesday afternoon. She was serenaded by students, received artwork as gifts and made sushi.
Last year, Melania Trump and Akie Abe visited the Morikami Gardens, which includes a museum highlighting the history of a Japanese colony in Palm Beach County.
The Abes plan to leave Thursday, when Trump is expected to visit Key West.