Kim arrives in Hanoi for summit with Trump
HANOI: Kim Jong Un arrived in Hanoi to throngs of cheering, flag-waving crowds yesterday, on the eve of a second summit with Donald Trump the world is closely watching for tangible progress over North Korea’s nuclear programme.
After a historic initial meeting in Singapore in June that produced only a vague statement about denuclearisation, analysts say the second date must deliver more concrete steps towards dismantling Pyongyang’s arsenal.
The normally sleepy Vietnamese border station of Dong Dang spruced itself up for Kim’s arrival after the young leader’s 4,000-kilometre, two-anda-half-day odyssey through China aboard his olive green train.
A military guard of honour in pristine white uniforms presented arms as Kim strolled down the red carpet waving and grinning, surrounded by a phalanx of aides and security personnel.
Local official Hoang Thi Thuy said she had waited in the cold rain since before dawn for a glimpse of Kim, the first North Korean leader to visit fellow oneparty state Vietnam since his grandfather Kim Il Sung in 1964.
“I was so excited when we were told to stand in place for the arrival of the train,” she told AFP. “We saw the leader from afar. I felt so happy, it’s hard to describe.”
Wearing his trademark Maostyle black suit and flanked by his troops of bodyguards, Kim was ushered into a waiting MercedesBenz and his motorcade rolled off towards Hanoi, where armoured personnel carriers patrolled the roads amid ultra-tight security.
He was greeted in Hanoi by cheering crowds behind barriers near the colonial-era pastel yellow Hanoi Opera House before arriving at the Melia hotel where he was expected to stay this week.
Trump was taking a more conventional route on Air Force One to the meeting and was expected to arrive in Hanoi late Tuesday. He tweeted he was looking forward to a “very productive” second summit.
HANOI: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Vietnam yesterday, hailing the upcoming second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as an ‘important opportunity' for denuclearisation and peace.
Pompeo as reported by Yonhap news agency, traveled to Hanoi on his own official aircraft, separate from Air Force One, and landed hours before Trump's scheduled arrival.
“Made it to Vietnam for President @realDonaldTrump's #HanoiSummit with the DPRK (North Korea),” Pompeo tweeted...”Will be important opportunity to make progress on Singapore Summit commitments of transformed relations, building lasting peace, and complete denuclearisation.” Trump and Kim are due to meet in Hanoi today and tomorrow to follow up on their first summit in Singapore in June.
The two leaders agreed then to work toward complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula in exchange for US security guarantees.
This week's summit is expected to flesh out steps both sides will take to achieve those goals.
The State Department said Pompeo is scheduled to meet with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in the evening.
Also possible is a meeting between Pompeo and his North Korean counterpart, Kim Yong Chol, for last-minute preparations ahead of the summit.
“Continuing our work to make progress toward denuclearisation and furthering relations,” he wrote in an earlier tweet en route to Hanoi.