After what was called a “very productive” meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the planning of the next Trump-Kim summit is already underway.
President Trump said he will meet with Kim after the Nov. 6 election due to a rigorous campaign schedule, but told reporters that “incredible progress” has been made in negotiations so far, and three or four locations are under consideration for the next summit, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.
When reporters asked when the next meeting would take place, President Trump said, “It’ll be after the mid-terms. I just can’t leave now,” but noted that the summit “won’t be too far away.”
He noted that the next summit with Kim would be in “probably a different location” than Singapore, where their June 12 summit took place. It was there that the two leaders agreed to North Korea’s “complete and verifiable” denuclearization.
Trump said, “eventually we’re going to have lots of meetings on U.S. soil and on their soil by the way. That’s a two-way street,” adding that he’s already developed a strong rapport with Kim throughout the negotiation process.
“We have a very good relationship with Chairman Kim. I like him, he likes me, the relationship is good,” he said.
“You got no rockets flying, you have no missiles flying, you have no #nuclear testing,” #Trump said of #NorthKorea. “We’ve made incredible progress – beyond incredible.” https://t.co/Cg5EL4m2lg
— Stephanie Nebehay (@StephNebehay) October 9, 2018
Before their Singapore summit, Geneva and Stockholm were two of the locations under consideration. North Korea had suggested Pyongyang as a meeting site, but that was considered too victorious for Kim.
President Trump noted that the planning of the next meeting was “part of the reason that Mike [Pompeo] was going over to meet” with North Korean officials.
On Monday, Pompeo told reporters, “we made significant progress. We’ll continue to make significant progress, and we are further along in making that progress than any administration in an awfully long time.”
“As soon as we get it logistically worked out, Chairman Kim said he’s ready … to allow them to come in,” Pompeo said, referencing the process of inspectors visiting the dismantled weapons facilities.
“While there’s still a long way to go and much work to do, we can now see a path where we will achieve (our) ultimate goal, which is the full and final verified denuclearization of North Korea,” Pompeo told reporters Tuesday, according to Straits Times.
