As President Trump embarked on a diplomatic blitz of ceremonial signings and high-stakes meetings in Asia this week, there was one thing he seemed eager to add to his schedule: a face-to-face meeting with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.
In not-so-subtle overtures, Mr. Trump indicated that he hoped Mr. Kim would reach out so they could have their first meeting of his second term. His fawning tone was striking even for a president who prides himself on personal diplomacy, particularly with authoritarian leaders.
As Mr. Trump traveled from Washington to Malaysia, the first stop on his six-day Asia tour, he suggested that he wanted the meeting to materialize in the same way as his hastily organized 2019 meeting with Mr. Kim on the border between North and South Korea did: through a social media post.
But this time — despite much speculation — there has been no public indication that a meeting will take place when Mr. Trump travels to South Korea later in the week.
“Well, I would if he would contact,” Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday, when asked if he would meet Mr. Kim. “The last time I met him, I put it out over the internet that I’m coming to South Korea and if he’d like to meet I’m open to it.”
Mr. Trump suggested that his invite might not reach Mr. Kim, saying that North Korea had “a lot of nuclear weapons but not a lot of telephone service.”
“He probably knows I’m coming, right?” he added. “If you want to put out the word, I’m open to it.”
On Monday, as Mr. Trump flew to Japan — where he met with family members of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea— Mr. Trump was asked if would extend his trip in order to accommodate a hypothetical meeting with Mr. Kim. (The president is due back at the White House on Thursday night to participate in Halloween trick-or-treating for law enforcement, military and foster families).
Mr. Trump said it would make sense to meet Mr. Kim on the last leg of his trip, in South Korea, where he is scheduled to meet China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, on Thursday. Mr. Trump said he and Mr. Kim could discuss sanctions on the North, among other topics.
“If he’d like to meet, I’m around,” he said. I’ll be in South Korea, so I can be right over there.”
“I would love to see him if he wants to, if he even gets this message,” he added.
Mr. Trump and the North Korean leader have had a roller coaster of a relationship that dates back to the president’s first term.
They went from publicly comparing the size of their nuclear arsenals — the U.S. “nuclear button” is “much bigger & more powerful,” Mr. Trump wrote on social media in 2018 — to holding warm summits and exchanging letters. Mr. Trump delighted in the correspondence, showing the letters to journalists even though they were classified material. Mr. Trump’s overtures ultimately did little to contain the North’s nuclear program, or to lessen its close ties with Russia.
In fact, North Korea has deepened ties with Russia and China since Mr. Trumps first term. Mr. Trump lashed out at the leaders of all three countries last month when they attended a military parade in Beijing, accusing them in a social media post of uniting to “conspire” against the United States.
Mr. Kim told the North Korean Parliament last month that he had “a good memory” of Mr. Trump from his first term, the country’s state-run news media reported. But he said the North would re-enter negotiations with Washington only if it stopped insisting that it denuclearize.
Choe Sang-Hun contributed reporting.
Erica L. Green is a White House correspondent for The Times, covering President Trump and his administration.
Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent for The Times, reporting on President Trump.
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