Trump hails progress after receiving note from North Korea's Kim

[webfact]

Trump hails progress after receiving note from North Korea's Kim

By Matt Spetalnick and Mohammad Zargham

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un walk together before their working lunch during their summit at the Capella Hotel on the resort island of Sentosa, Singapore June 12, 2018. Picture taken June 12, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Kim Jong Un told President Donald Trump he believed their efforts could open up a “new future” between North Korea and the United States and expressed hope for “practical actions” in the future, according to a letter from the North Korean leader released on Thursday.

 

But Kim, in the note posted by Trump on Twitter, made no mention of any work by North Korea towards denuclearization at a time when there has been no sign of concrete action by Pyongyang since the two leaders held a landmark summit in Singapore on June 12.

 

Despite that, Trump hailed the July 6 letter as a “very nice note,” saying “Great progress being made.”

 

Hours after Trump's tweet, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said North Korea offered to meet a U.S. delegation on Sunday to discuss the repatriation of remains of U.S. soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War, a pledge Trump had said he secured from Kim during last month's summit.

 

This came after the North Koreans failed to show up for a meeting on the issue scheduled for Thursday at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.

 

Kim, in his note, praised Trump for “energetic and extraordinary efforts made by Your Excellency Mr. President for the improvement of relations between the two countries and the faithful implementation of the joint statement.”

 

He was referring the summit statement signed by the two leaders - the first-ever U.S.-North Korean summit - in which Kim agreed in broad terms to "work toward denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula.

 

Trump later said North Korea was no longer a nuclear threat, even though no details were announced, and critics suggested the president had failed to secure any new commitments from Pyongyang towards the dismantling of its nuclear missile programme.

 

The date of the letter suggests it may have been sent around the time of Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s visit to Pyongyang last week, in which the United States and North Korea struggled to make headway on the denuclearization issue.

 

North Korea accused the United States on Saturday of making "gangster-like" demands in the talks in North Korea, contradicting Pompeo who said the old enemies had made progress.

 

Adam Mount, an analyst at the Federation of American Scientists who focuses on U.S. nuclear strategy and North Korea, said in a tweet that Kim "blows off Pompeo in Pyongyang, has his team stand up U.S. negotiators in the DMZ, but still delights Trump with a vague note."

"He's realized he can humiliate and ignore the U.S. as long as he flatters the president," Mount said.

 

Kim’s note, which Trump included in his Twitter post with an image of the letter in Korean and an English-language translation of it, struck a positive tone.

 

"I firmly believe that the strong will, sincere efforts and unique approach of myself and Your Excellency Mr. President aimed at opening up a new future between the DPRK and the U.S. will surely come to fruition," Kim wrote, referring to North Korea by its acronym.

 

Kim said he hoped the process between the two sides would lead to "practical actions" in the future, though he offered no specifics, and that there would be a second meeting between the two leaders.

 

(Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom and David Alexander; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and James Dalgleish)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-07-13

[bristolboy]

It's so obvious what Kim is doing here. Praising Trump and dissing his subordinates. He knows that if there are 2 things Trump loves, it's being flattered and having his subordinate denigrated.

Edited July 13, 2018 by bristolboy

[klauskunkel]

manipulating Trump by playing to his ego,

all you European leaders take note on how to do it.

Edited July 13, 2018 by klauskunkel

[alanrchase]

So was Trump lying when he said the remains of US soldiers had already been returned?

 

https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKBN1JH05J

[Tug]

Trump you got played by a hillbillie backwards despot sir you are a dumb ass

[Ramen087]

The N. Korea Supreme Leader is playing to his chief benefactor.  International Politics...Stranger than fiction unless you read between the lines. 

 

https://nypost.com/2018/07/10/its-clear-china-is-behind-north-koreas-latest-flip/

[Srikcir]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Kim Jong Un told President Donald Trump he believed their efforts could open up a “new future” between North Korea and the United States

So long as potatoes don't get the higher priority:
Kim Jong Un Chose A Potato Farm Over Mike Pompeo:

@ 1:17

 

[bristolboy]

3 hours ago, Ramen087 said:

The N. Korea Supreme Leader is playing to his chief benefactor.  International Politics...Stranger than fiction unless you read between the lines. 

 

https://nypost.com/2018/07/10/its-clear-china-is-behind-north-koreas-latest-flip/

This is just a way of making Trump seem less incompetent than he otherwise would be. I don't doubt that the Chinese are making it easier for the North Koreans but that's not the same as being behind it.

[JAG]

6 hours ago, alanrchase said:

So was Trump lying when he said the remains of US soldiers had already been returned?

 

https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKBN1JH05J

We are unlikely to ever know if all the remains have been returned. Unless each man was buried separately, a proper record of the grave kept, and his identity tags left on the body (all three very unlikely) all you will have is a jumbled mass of bones.

 

Not of course that that will worry Mr Trump, the man who fought his own heroic yet anguished battle against the malignant curse of bonespurs. Nothing you can tell him about sacrifice...

Edited July 13, 2018 by JAG

[ballpoint]

Dear Donerld, I enjoyed meeting you in Singerpoor last month. Can you please send me some more money, because I have already spent what you gave me and now my buffalo is sick and my mother needs a hip operation. Love you long time, Your Kimmy.

[Ramen087]

4 hours ago, bristolboy said:

This is just a way of making Trump seem less incompetent than he otherwise would be. I don't doubt that the Chinese are making it easier for the North Koreans but that's not the same as being behind it.

It's obvious the Supreme Leader is doing his master's bidding. It's all part of the Geopolitical Game. And that's OK; criticism by proxy, direct or indirect, has been part of politics since day one.

[Redline]

1 hour ago, ballpoint said:

Dear Donerld, I enjoyed meeting you in Singerpoor last month. Can you please send me some more money, because I have already spent what you gave me and now my buffalo is sick and my mother needs a hip operation. Love you long time, Your Kimmy.

I'm writing this from the hospital.  Also, even though I am thrilled I got something without giving, China thanks you for ending the military exercises in the hood

[janclaes47]

11 hours ago, alanrchase said:

So was Trump lying when he said the remains of US soldiers had already been returned?

 

https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKBN1JH05J

He was talking about 200, so that means 7500 left still, so maybe it's just you.

[bristolboy]

1 hour ago, Ramen087 said:

It's obvious the Supreme Leader is doing his master's bidding. It's all part of the Geopolitical Game. And that's OK; criticism by proxy, direct or indirect, has been part of politics since day one.

Really? Was it obvious that North Korea was doing China's bidding when it created its nuclear program? Anybody who knows anything about the North Korean leaders knows what tough paranoid recalcitrant S.O.B.s they are.

[Ramen087]

15 hours ago, bristolboy said:

Really? Was it obvious that North Korea was doing China's bidding when it created its nuclear program? Anybody who knows anything about the North Korean leaders knows what tough paranoid recalcitrant S.O.B.s they are.

We're discussing notes.  We're not discussing nukes. Have a nice day.

Edited July 14, 2018 by Ramen087

[bristolboy]

1 minute ago, Ramen087 said:

We're not discussing nukes. Have a nice day.

You called China Kim's master. So yes, it is relevant.

[Ramen087]

5 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

You called China Kim's master. So yes, it is relevant.

Have a nice day.  

[bristolboy]

Just now, Ramen087 said:

Have a nice day.  

And you have a clear thinking one.