Trump plays down fears of rushed talks

US president looks to reassure allies that he won’t give away the store in pursuit of a deal with Kim

Heading into his North Korea summit with characteristic bravado, President Donald Trump says that “attitude” is more important than preparation as he looks to negotiate an accord with Kim Jong-un to denuclearise the Korean Peninsula.

He’s also rebuffing any advice from Democrats, alleging in a tweet yesterday that they did “NOTHING” on North Korea while in charge.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has said he’s concerned that the president wants a deal so badly he might strike a bad one.

“Schumer failed with North Korea and Iran, we don’t need his advice!” Trump tweeted.

Preparing to depart Washington for next week’s meeting, Trump dangled before Kim visions of normalised relations with the US, economic investment and even a White House visit. Characterising the talks with the third-generation autocrat as a “friendly negotiation,” Trump said, “I really believe that Kim Jong Un wants to do something.”

Trump’s comments came as he looked to reassure allies that he won’t give away the store in pursuit of a legacy-defining deal with Kim, who has long sought to cast off his pariah status on the international stage. The North has faced crippling diplomatic and economic sanctions as it has advanced development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.