Trump may hold historic talks with Kim Jong Un this fall - CNN
Photo: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump could meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as early as November. However, the possibility of such a meeting remains uncertain, CNN reports.
According to CNN sources, Trump administration officials have privately discussed a potential meeting between the US and North Korean leaders. It could take place during Trump's planned trip to Asia next month. Many, however, remain skeptical that the meeting will happen.
Sources also said that officials have not yet carried out the serious logistical planning required for such a visit. They noted there have been no contacts between Washington and Pyongyang — the kind Trump occasionally maintained during his first term.
Trump's initial outreach to Kim earlier this year went unanswered, as North Korea reportedly declined to accept his letter.
Instead, the White House has focused on arranging a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during the upcoming trip amid ongoing US-China trade tensions.
Still, Trump has expressed interest — both publicly and privately — in meeting his North Korean counterpart, and officials have not ruled out that possibility during his Asia trip.
CNN recalled how quickly plans can change. During Trump's first term, officials arranged a handshake between the two leaders in the Korean Demilitarized Zone less than 48 hours after Trump posted an invitation on X.
When Trump renewed his interest in meeting Kim Jong Un
CNN sources said Trump's renewed interest emerged after he hosted South Korean President Lee Jae Myung at the White House in August. During their talks, Lee formally invited Trump to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) trade ministers' meeting in South Korea and suggested it could provide an opportunity for Trump to meet Kim.
Trump responded positively, telling Lee he would consider it.
"I will do that, and we'll have talks. He'd like to meet with me. We look forward to meeting with him, and we’ll make relations better," Trump said.
Kim Jong Un also expressed readiness to meet Trump. He said so in a speech to North Korea's parliament in September, according to state media reports.
"Personally, I still have good memories of US President Trump. If the US drops its hollow obsession with denuclearization and wants to pursue peaceful coexistence with North Korea based on the recognition of reality, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the US," Kim said.
The situation has changed since Trump and Kim last met in 2019 in Panmunjom, on the border between the two Koreas. CNN noted that South Korea played a crucial role in bringing North Korea back to the negotiating table and paved the way for that meeting, during which Trump became the first sitting US President to step onto North Korean soil.
At that time, inter-Korean relations were significantly warmer. CNN added that South Korea's new president has been in office for only a few months and has yet to shed the legacy of his predecessor, who was far more confrontational toward Kim’s regime.
According to South Korea's Unification Ministry, there are currently no regular communications between the two Koreas regarding a possible US–North Korea summit. A South Korean government source told CNN that while a White House security team made two advance trips to South Korea ahead of Trump's visit, neither trip included Panmunjom.
"A repeat of the 2019 summit with Kim is not in the cards for now," CNN concluded.
A few weeks ago, Nikkei reported that Trump could meet Kim in the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea. The outlet also detailed with whom Trump is expected to meet ahead of the possible summit with Kim.
