USA TODAY International Edition
Trump claims progress with North Korea and Kim
WASHINGTON – President Trump praised Kim Jong Un’s surprise visit to China this week as a step toward denuclearization, and echoed his plan to meet with the North Korean leader soon about his country’s nuclear weapons program.
“For years and through many administrations, everyone said that peace and the denucleari- zation of the Korean Peninsula was not even a small possibility,” Trump tweeted. “Now there is a good chance that Kim Jong Un will do what is right for his people and for humanity.” He added, “look forward to our meeting!”
Trump also said he spoke by phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who claimed progress with Kim during meetings in Beijing.
Chinese state media reported that Kim committed to denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula during his “unofficial visit” this week. It was the first trip outside of North Korea for the 34-year-old Kim since he took power in 2011.
In his tweet, Trump said that Xi reported that “his meeting with KIM JONG UN went very well and that KIM looks forward to his meeting with me.”
Trump announced this month he had an accepted an invitation delivered to him by the government of South Korea, which supports talks between the U.S. and North Korea.
U.S. officials are working to schedule a meeting that Trump would like to see by the end of May.
The Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted Kim as saying: “If South Korea and the United States respond with good will to our efforts and create an atmosphere of peace and stability, and take phased, synchronized measures to achieve peace, the issue of the denuclearization of the peninsula can reach resolution.”