Trump says he ‘would love’ to meet with North Korea’s Kim during Asia trip
President Donald Trump said Monday he “would love” to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his current Asia trip. The US president arrived in Japan on the latest leg of his five-day Asia trip, which he hopes to cap with an agreement on a trade war truce with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
US President Donald Trump did not rule out Monday extending his Asia trip to meet Kim Jong Un, saying he “would love” to speak with the North Korean leader.
Trump arrived in Japan on Monday, the next leg of an Asia tour that could see the US president and China’s Xi Jinping end the bruising trade war between the world’s largest economies.
Speaking on Air Force One, Trump said he was hopeful of a deal when he sees Xi on Thursday in South Korea, while also indicating he was willing to extend his trip in order to meet North Korea’s Kim.
“I have a lot of respect for President Xi and we are going to I think… come away with a deal,” he told reporters en route from Malaysia, where comments from US and Chinese trade negotiators raised hopes of an accord.
Trump opened his visit to Japan on Monday with greetings from the emperor a day before he meets new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is banking on building a friendly personal relationship with the US leader to ease trade tensions.
A key to this strategy might lie in an idea floated by Japan’s government to buy a fleet of Ford F-150 trucks, a meaningful gesture that may also be impractical given the narrow streets in Tokyo and other Japanese cities.
It’s an early diplomatic test for Takaichi, the first woman to lead Japan. She took office only last week, and has a tenuous coalition backing her.
‘Open’ to a meeting with Kim Jung Un
As he left Washington for his Asia trip, Trump first added to speculation that he could meet the North Korean leader for the first time since 2019 while on the Korean peninsula, saying he was “open” to it.
“If he wants to meet, I’ll be in South Korea,” Trump said.
Trump is due in the South Korean port city of Busan on Wednesday ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, and will meet South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.
South Korea’s reunification minister has said there is a “considerable” chance that Trump and Kim will meet.
Kim has said he would also be open to meeting the US president if Washington drops its demand that Pyongyang give up its nuclear arsenal.
BY IHIRWE J. Christian