US president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have opened the second day of their high-stakes nuclear summit with a one-on-one discussion.
By Associated Press Reporters
February 28 2019 2:59 AM
US president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have opened the second day of their high-stakes nuclear summit with a one-on-one discussion.
Mr Trump and Mr Kim jumped into the details of nuclear negotiations on Thursday against a backdrop of swirling questions about what Mr Kim was willing to give up and what Mr Trump may demand in the face of rising domestic turmoil.
Tempering expectations, Mr Trump opened by declaring, “There’s no rush. We just want to do the right deal.”
The two men continued to offer hopeful words as talks began anew at their second summit about curbing Pyongyang’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, a problem that has plagued generations of leaders.
In a stark change from a year ago, when he painted the threat from Pyongyang as so grave that “fire and fury” may need to be rained down on North Korea, Mr Trump made clear he was willing to accept a slower timetable for denuclearisation.
“Speed is not important,” Mr Trump said. “What’s important is that we do the right deal.”
Accompanied only by translators, the unlikely pair — a 72-year-old billionaire and a 35-year-old reclusive autocrat — displayed a familiarity with one another as they began the day’s negotiations.
“The relationship is just very strong and when you have a good relationship a lot of good things happen,” said Mr Trump.
Speed is not important. What’s important is that we do the right deal
Donald Trump
He added that, at their opulent dinner the night before, “a lot of great ideas were being thrown about”.
