SEOUL, Oct 24 — South Korea’s unification minister said Friday he believed there was a “considerable” chance that US President Donald Trump will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a visit to the peninsula next week.
Trump is expected in South Korea on Wednesday for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum.
US media have reported officials from his administration have privately discussed setting up a meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim, who he last held talks with in 2019.
North Korea appears “to be paying attention to the United States and various signs… suggest a considerable possibility of a meeting,” unification minister Chung Dong-young told reporters.
Trump has said he hopes to meet Kim again—possibly this year.
Kim said last month he had “fond memories” of Trump and was open to talks if the United States dropped its “delusional” demand that Pyongyang give up its nuclear weapons.
Seoul on Friday urged the two leaders not to let the chance “slip away”.
“I don’t want to miss even a one per cent chance,” the unification minister said.
“They need to make a decision,” Chung, whose ministry handles fraught relations with the North, added.
Kim and Trump last met in 2019 at Panmunjom in the Joint Security Area in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas—the only place where soldiers from both sides face each other on a regular basis.
While no official announcements of the duo’s meeting have been made, South Korea and the United Nations Command halted tours of the JSA from late October to early November.
Minister Chung said North Koreans have been spotted “sprucing up” areas near the JSA for the first time this year—cleaning, pulling weeds, tidying flower beds and taking photos around Panmunjom. — AFP
