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US President Donald Trump has said he plans to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, reviving diplomatic engagement with Pyongyang and returning nuclear negotiations with the isolated country to the centre of his foreign policy agenda.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said it was important for Washington and Pyongyang to “get along” and confirmed that a meeting with Kim was planned for 2026.
“Yeah, I will be,” Trump said when asked if he expected to meet the North Korean leader later this year.
Trump defended his decision to pursue talks with Kim despite continuing criticism over North Korea’s nuclear programme. He claimed Pyongyang now possesses 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons, saying the situation should have been prevented.
“He has 57 very powerful nuclear weapons. Should have never allowed it to happen,” Trump said. “If I were president, I wouldn’t have allowed it. But he’s got them. I get along with him very well.”
The US president said he could maintain dialogue with Kim while opposing nuclear expansion by other countries, including Iran, arguing that Tehran should not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons.
Trump did not provide details of the planned meeting, but reports have suggested it could take place during his expected trip to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November.
The announcement has raised concerns among some US allies in Asia, particularly after Trump recently ordered a reduction in joint military exercises with South Korea. Trump described the drills as “very insulting” to Kim and said the North Korean leader had been “very well behaved.”
During his first term, Trump held three historic meetings with Kim between 2018 and 2019, becoming the first sitting US president to meet a North Korean leader. The talks produced global attention but failed to deliver a lasting agreement on denuclearisation.
Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, said she was unaware of any recent communication between the two leaders but acknowledged that her brother still had “good memories and feelings” about Trump. She dismissed the reduction in US-South Korean military exercises, saying North Korea did not consider the move significant.
Pyongyang has long viewed the drills as preparations for a possible invasion.
The United States maintains about 28,500 troops in South Korea as part of its security commitment following the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice rather than a formal peace treaty.
Trump’s renewed focus on Kim comes as his administration faces criticism over its approach to international alliances and security commitments in East Asia.
