History in the Making: Trump and Kim Finally Meet

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11 June 2018

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Trump confident he'll be able to come up with a denuclearization deal with North Korea, something, he says, those in the past couldn't accomplish.

U.S. President Donald Trump and his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong Un now meeting in Singapore in preparation for their talks in private on Tuesday. Kim told the press by way of an interpreter that "the road to this conversation was not easy." Trump agreed that he has "no doubt" that the two leaders will have a terrific relationship.

Trump says their first discussion could "work out very nicely." However his secretary of state, Mike Pompeo noted that their unprecedented but brief meeting will unlikely yield what Washington wants, Pyongyang's full denuclearization.

The head of state Tweeted Tuesday he would be able to come up with a deal with North Korea, unlike his predecessors.

According to the North Korea news agency, KCNA, discussions will focus on "the issue of building a permanent and durable peace-keeping mechanism on the Korean peninsula, the issue of realizing the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and other issues of mutual concern."

The North Korean leader has said he’s willing to denuclearize but hasn’t made unclear how to complete this or what he might seek for the country in return, according to the BBC. Sky News says Kim is looking for the U.S. to lift the stranglehold economic sanctions it holds on the north portion of the peninsula.

Pompeo told reports in Singapore this is "an unprecedented opportunity to change the trajectory of our relationship and bring peace and prosperity" to North Korea. The secretary of state indicated this meeting will be the first of many and will set the foundation for "the hard work that will follow."

This first summit between the two previously feuding leaders seemed impossible last year as they publicly hurled names at each other.

Kim met with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong soon after arriving in the city on Sunday and thanked the leader for his “sincere cooperation of providing all conditions and best conveniences for the historic DPRK-U.S. summit meeting and talks,” according to KCNA. The meeting is to take place at the resort island of Sentosa, just off the Singapore mainland.

This is only the third time that Kim has been known to leave the country since taking office in 2011. His first two international trips took place only in the past few months to China and later South Korea.

He and Trump are scheduled to leave Singapore by Tuesday night after the summit.