One-time shot at peace: Trump on summit with Kim Jong-un
Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump's 12 June Singapore Summit for an unprecedented summit is an attempt to address the last festering legacy of the Cold War, with Trump calling it a "one time shot" at peace. Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal, which has seen it subjected to several sets of UN Security Council sanctions and threatened with military action by Trump administration, will top the agenda.
A formal end to the Korean War also on agenda
Bringing the Korean War to a formal end 65 years after hostilities ceased will also be on the agenda at the first-ever meeting between a North Korean leader and a sitting US President. The Singapore summit is the climax of the astonishing flurry of diplomacy on and around Korean peninsula, but critics charge that it risks being largely a triumph of style over substance.
US wants North Korea's denuclearization
The US is demanding the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization (CVID) of North Korea, the latter so far only made public pledges of its commitment to the denuclearization of the peninsula -- a term open to wide interpretation - while seeking security guarantees.
Summit would forge good relationship, leading towards deal: Trump
Former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, however, expected little progress on the key issue of denuclearization. Trump called the summit a "one-time shot", adding he will know "within the first minute" whether an agreement is possible. He added if he thinks an agreement is impossible, he won't waste time, also dangling the prospect of Kim's Washington visit if the meeting goes well.
Summit was available to any US President: Christopher Hill
"It is important to understand that this summit was available to any US President who wanted to do it...the point is no US President wanted to do this, and for good reasons," said Christopher Hill, a former lead US nuclear negotiator with North Korea.
Trump called Kim the "Little Rocket Man" last year
North Korea made increasing advances in its nuclear arsenal, which it says are needed to defend against the risk of a US invasion. Last year, Pyongyang carried out by far its most powerful nuclear test, launching missiles capable of reaching the US mainland, sending tensions soaring to a level unseen. Trump traded threats of war and colorful personal insults with Kim.
US, North Korea have been at loggerheads for decades
North Korea invaded the South in 1950; the ensuing war saw the US-led UN troops backing Seoul fight their way to a stalemate against Pyongyang's Russia and China-aided forces before the conflict ended in stalemate and an armistice which sealed the division of the peninsula.
This isn't a question of preparation, says Trump on summit
The South's Winter Olympics catalyzed a flurry of diplomatic moves as South Korean President Moon Jae-in sought to bring the US and North Korea together. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said progress was being made in bringing the two sides together in their understanding of denuclearization. Trump, meanwhile, baffled observers, saying he didn't think he had to prepare "very much" for the summit.
