Tag: trump kim meeting

Donald Trump becomes first US president to set foot in North Korea, meets Kim Jong Un

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US President Donald Trump met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between the two Koreas on Sunday, shaking hands warmly and both expressing hopes for peace.

It was the third meeting between the two leaders in just over a year and will raise hopes for a revival of stalled nuclear talks.

Trump, escorted by Kim, briefly crossed a military demarcation line that had for years represented a tense Cold War border, into the North, becoming the first ever sitting US president to set foot in the reclusive country.

Moments later they returned to the South Korean side and joined President Moon Jae-in for a brief chat, marking an unprecedented three-way gathering. Trump and Kim then held a bilateral closed-door meeting.

“It’s a great day for the world,” Trump said as he and Kim stood together amidst a throng of press photographers, aides and bodyguards.

Kim looked relaxed and smiled as he chatted with Trump.

“I was surprised to see your message that you wanted to meet me,” he told Trump, referring to Trump’s Saturday offer, in a Twitter posting, to meet.

“This is an expression of his willingness” to work towards a new future, Kim said.

Kim said it would be a great honour if Trump visited his capital of Pyongyang.

“To cross that line was a great honour,” Trump said, referring to his brief incursion into the North Korean side of the DMZ.

Trump arrived in South Korea late on Saturday for talks with Moon after attending a Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, during which he made the surprise, spur-of-the-moment offer to meet Kim, who accepted it.

Trump and Kim met in the so-called Joint Security Area (JSA), which is patrolled by soldiers from both Koreas. Moon joined the two after their initial handshakes.

Trump and Kim met for the first time in Singapore in June last year, and agreed to improve relations and work towards the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

But there has been little progress since then.

A second summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, in February broke down after the two sides failed to narrow differences between a US demand for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and a North Korean demand for sanctions relief.

Trump had earlier told Moon that he had “plenty of time” and was in “no rush” to reach a deal.

North Korea has pursued nuclear and missile programmes for years in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions, and easing tensions with North Korea is one of the US president’s top foreign policy priorities.

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North Korea’s Kim arrives in Vietnam for summit; Trump on his way

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Vietnam on Tuesday for a summit with US President Donald Trump where they will try to reach an agreement on a North’s Korean pledge to give up its nuclear weapons programme.

Trump is due to arrive in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, on Tuesday evening.

Trump will meet Kim for a brief one-on-one conversation on Wednesday evening, followed by a social dinner, at which they will each be accompanied by two guests and interpreters, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters on Air Force One.

She said that would be followed by more meetings between the two leaders on Thursday.

Their talks come eight months after their historic summit in Singapore, the first between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader.

While there is no real expectation that the second meeting will bring a final deal on ridding North Korea of nuclear weapons that threaten the United States, there are some hopes it could lead to a declaration that the 1950-53 Korean War is at last formally over.

But the United States would expect significant movement by Kim towards denuclearisation in return.

In Singapore, Kim pledged to work toward complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, but the vague agreement struck there has produced few concrete results. US Democratic senators and security officials have warned Trump against cutting a deal that would do little to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

Kim travelling from the North Korean capital by train, arrived at the station in the Vietnamese town of Dong Dang after crossing over the border from China, a Reuters witnesses at the station said.

Vietnamese officials were on hand to receive him at the station with a red-carpet including a guard of honour and North Korean and Vietnamese flags flying.

Kim left his train in Dong Dang and set off on the 170 km (105 miles) to the capital, Hanoi, by car.

Both Kim and Trump are also due to hold separate talks with Vietnamese leaders.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also arrived in Hanoi, on Tuesday, a reporter travelling with him said.

Pompeo has been Trump’s top envoy in his efforts to improve ties with the reclusive North and has made several trips to Pyongyang to negotiate steps towards ending its nuclear programme.

‘Tremendous’

Trump told reporters he and Kim would have “a very tremendous summit”.

Tweeting on Monday, he stressed the benefits to North Korea if it gave up its nuclear weapons. “With complete Denuclearization, North Korea will rapidly become an Economic Powerhouse. Without it, just more of the same. Chairman Kim will make a wise decision!” Trump said.

In a speech on Sunday night, Trump, however, appeared to play down any hope of a major breakthrough at the Hanoi summit, saying he would be happy as long as North Korea maintained its pause on weapons testing.

“I’m not in a rush. I don’t want to rush anybody,” he said. “I just don’t want testing. As long as there’s no testing, we’re happy.”

North Korea conducted its last nuclear test in September 2017 and last tested an intercontinental ballistic missile in November 2017.

A South Korean presidential spokesman told reporters in Seoul on Monday that the two sides might be able to agree to a formal end of the Korean War, which ended in an armistice not a peace treaty, a move North Korea has long sought.

While a formal peace treaty may be a long way off, the two sides have discussed the possibility of a political declaration stating that the war over.

“The possibility is there,” the South Korean spokesman, Kim Eui-kyeom told a briefing.

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Trump heads to North Korea summit in no rush on denuclearisation

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US President Donald Trump headed for Vietnam on Monday for a second summit with Kim Jong Un, having stressed the benefits to Pyongyang if the North Korean leader gives up his nuclear weapons, but saying there was no rush.

Trump and Kim are due to meet in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, on Wednesday and Thursday, eight months after their historic summit in Singapore, the first between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader.

While there is no real expectation that the second meeting will bring a final deal on ridding North Korea of nuclear weapons that threaten the United States, there are some hopes it could bring a declaration that the 1950-53 Korean War is at last formally over.

In Singapore, Kim pledged to work toward complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, but the vague agreement struck there has produced few concrete results. US Democratic senators and security officials have warned Trump against cutting a deal that would do little to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

Trump left for Vietnam aboard Air Force One from Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington shortly after 12:30 p.m. EST (1730 GMT) on Monday. He is due to arrive in Hanoi on Tuesday evening, local time.

Trump will meet Kim for a brief one-on-one conversation on Wednesday evening, followed by a social dinner, at which they will each be accompanied by two guests and interpreters, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters on Air Force One. She said that would be followed by more meetings between the two leaders on Thursday.

She said Trump would be accompanied at the dinner by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney.

Speaking in Washington on Sunday, Trump said he believed he saw eye-to-eye with Kim and that they had developed “a very, very good relationship.”

Tweeting on Monday, he stressed the benefits to North Korea if it gave up its nuclear weapons. “With complete Denuclearisation, North Korea will rapidly become an Economic Powerhouse. Without it, just more of the same. Chairman Kim will make a wise decision!” Trump said.

Trump told reporters he and Kim would have “a very tremendous summit.”

In a speech on Sunday night, Trump, however, appeared to play down any hope of a major breakthrough at the Hanoi summit, saying he would be happy as long as North Korea maintained its pause on weapons testing.

“I’m not in a rush. I don’t want to rush anybody,” he said. “I just don’t want testing. As long as there’s no testing, we’re happy.”

North Korea conducted its last nuclear test in September 2017 and last tested an intercontinental ballistic missile in November 2017.

Domestic Pressure

Trump’s departure from Washington comes at a time of increased pressure at home.

Anticipation has been rising about the impending release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian interference in the 2016 US elections, although a senior US Justice Department official said on Friday it would not come this week.

Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen is due to testify in a public hearing before a US congressional committee on Wednesday, and the panel’s chairman said Trump’s business practices would be a focus of the testimony.

A South Korean presidential spokesman told reporters in Seoul the two sides might be able to agree to a formal end of the Korean War, which ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty, a move North Korea has long sought.

While a formal peace treaty may be a long way off, the two sides have discussed the possibility of a political declaration stating that the war over.

“The possibility is there,” the spokesman, Kim Eui-kyeom told a briefing in Seoul.

Before its testing halt, the North conducted a series of tests that it says has given it the capability of reaching the US mainland with nuclear weapons.

The United States has for years demanded North Korea’s complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation before any concessions will be granted. North Korea denounced that stance as unilateral and “gangster-like.”

In recent days, Trump has signalled a possible softening, saying he would love to be able to remove tough sanctions if there was meaningful progress on denuclearisation.

Easing of punishing sanctions is a top priority for North Korea. It warned Trump on Sunday not to listen to US critics who it said were disrupting efforts to improve ties. Trump has scoffed at those questioning his handling of North Korea, and added that Chinese President Xi Jinping has been supportive of US efforts.

Sanctions To Remain In Place

In return for a declaration that the war is over, North Korea could allow international inspectors to observe the dismantlement of its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon, analysts say.

The United States could also agree to opening US-North Korea liaison offices and allow some inter-Korean projects, provided the North takes steps toward denuclearisation.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNN on Sunday that core economic sanctions “that prevent countries from conducting trade, creating wealth for North Korea … are definitely going to remain in place” until complete denuclearisation.

But he suggested there could be other concessions toward North Korea, such as “exchanges of people, lots of other ways … if we get a substantial step and move forward.”

In Geneva, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he hoped the summit would produce “concrete steps for sustainable, peaceful and complete and verifiable denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.”

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who supports opening up North Korea, praised Trump and Kim, saying those opposed to better ties on the peninsula, and between North Korea and the United States, should “discard such biased perspectives”.

Kim is making his way to Vietnam by train through China and is expected to arrive in Vietnam early on Tuesday.

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Trump plans to meet North Korea’s Kim in Vietnam on February 27-28

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US President Donald Trump plans to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam on February 27 and 28, Politico reported on Tuesday.

Trump disclosed the date in a meeting with television anchors, Politico said. He was expected to announce details of the summit with Kim during his annual State of the Union address to Congress later on Tuesday.

It was not immediately clear in which city the meeting would take place.

Trump first met Kim on June 12 in Singapore and has been eager to hold a second summit in spite of a lack of concrete progress in persuading North Korea to give up a nuclear weapons program that threatens the United States.

Communist-ruled Vietnam, which has good relations with both the United States and North Korea, had been widely touted as the most likely venue for the meeting.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Vietnam in July and urged North Korea to follow its example, saying Trump believed Pyongyang could replicate Hanoi’s path to normal relations with Washington and prosperity after its own war with the United States.

US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun was due to hold talks in Pyongyang this week to map out what he called “a set of concrete deliverables” for the second meeting.

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Trump, North Korea’s Kim sign historic document after Singapore summit

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday announced the signing of a historic document following a momentous summit in Singapore.

Trump claimed that his meeting with Kim had gone “better than anybody could have expected” and announced that the leaders planned a signing ceremony shortly.

After the lunch, Trump announced the signing ceremony but provided no details on what was being signed, saying only: “We’re going to be announcing that in a couple of minutes.”

Trump and Kim concluded a meeting in Singapore aimed at finding a way to end a nuclear standoff on the Korean peninsula.

The two leaders could agree on a declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War, the fire in which his grandfather, Kim Il Sung, forged the North Korean state. The war was concluded with a truce, not a peace treaty, but a treaty will also have to include China, which was party to the armistice, reported Reuters.

Ahead of the meeting, Trump had said he would be able to work out within the first minute whether his North Korean counterpart was serious about making peace.

The meeting is key for Trump as he is trying hard to cut a deal to end the North Korean nuclear threat with his approach to Kim, who representing the third generation of North Korea’s ruling dynasty.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow