Trump sends letter to Kim Jong-un: report

Team Udayavani, Jan 15, 2019, 8:08 AM IST

Washington: Donald Trump has sent a letter to Kim Jong-un, a media report said Tuesday, days after the US President said he received a “great letter” from the reclusive North Korean leader, amid talks about a second summit between them on denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

Kim and Trump held a historic meeting in Singapore on June 12 last year where they issued a vague goal for the “complete denuclearisation” of the Korean Peninsula without describing when and how it would occur.

The letter delivered over the weekend comes after President Trump said early this month that he had received a “great letter” from Kim and was looking forward to meet the North Korean leader for a second time in the “not-too-distant future”.

The letter comes as the two sides negotiate details of a second meeting between the two leaders. It was flown to Pyongyang and delivered by hand, the CNN reported, quoting a source familiar with the ongoing talks between Washington and Pyongyang on denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea’s former spy chief Kim Yong Chol – one of Pyongyang’s top negotiators – could visit Washington as soon as this week to finalise details of the upcoming summit, it said.

The CNN previously reported that US scouting teams had visited Bangkok, Hanoi and Hawaii as they search for a location for the second summit.

Last week, South Korean President Moon Jae-in threw his support behind another Trump-Kim meeting, saying it – along with a visit by Kim to Seoul – would be a turning point “that will firmly solidify peace on the Korean Peninsula”, the report said.

“We will not loosen our guard until the promise to denuclearise the Peninsula is kept, and peace is fully institutionalised,” Moon said.

Trump’s announcement of receiving a letter from Kim had come after the North Korean leader warned that Pyongyang may change its approach to nuclear talks if Washington persists with sanctions.

Earlier, the US president expressed satisfaction over the progress in talks with the North Koreans, saying he is in no rush for the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

“We’re getting along fine. I’m not in any rush. I don’t have to rush. All I know is there’s no rockets, there’s no testing,” he said.

Trump said his administration was not getting any credit for this peace initiative which has averted the world from a major war.

After years of isolation, Kim held a number of diplomatic summits in 2018, meeting with Moon, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Last week, he made a surprise visit to Beijing to meet again with Xi, a meeting which indicated that China remains a major player in any future action to denuclearise the Korean Peninsula.