United States: Donald Trump wants to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un again

After attacks on domestic politics in South Korea, during a meeting with the new South Korean President Lee Jae-myung at the White House on Monday, Donald Trump said he was on the same wavelength on the North Korean issue as his counterpart, a leader classified as left-leaning and in favor of dialogue with the North. Donald Trump, who met Kim Jong Un three times during his first term (2017-2021), claimed to have an excellent relationship with the North Korean leader and to know him "almost better than anyone, except his sister."

"At some point, I will see him. I look forward to seeing him," he told reporters, adding that he hoped a meeting could take place as early as this year. In a speech after his meeting with Donald Trump, Lee Jae-myung called for a "pragmatic," "more reciprocal," and "forward-looking" partnership between the two countries.

He also warned about North Korea's nuclear capabilities. "An intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States is almost fully developed, and they continue to build up their capacity to produce about 10 to 20 nuclear bombs a year," he said. The two Koreas have technically remained at war for more than seven decades, with the 1950-53 conflict ending in an armistice, not a peace treaty.

Donald Trump repeatedly claims to have ended six or seven wars in seven months—a disputed claim—but he has not often spoken about North Korea. During his first term, he notably met with Kim Jong Un at a summit in June 2019 on the 1953 demilitarized armistice line, even taking a few symbolic steps onto North Korean soil. But these meetings produced no major breakthroughs.

Since then, North Korea, which has moved closer to Russia in the context of the war against Ukraine , has continued to refuse to discuss the dismantling of its nuclear program. Lee Jae-myung, who has criticized the US military in the past, has been quick to flatter President Trump, saying that he has made the United States "not a guarantor of peace, but a peacemaker."

"I look forward to seeing you meet with Chairman Kim Jong Un and seeing a Trump Tower built in North Korea and playing golf there," he said. And while Donald Trump is known for waiting for lucrative business deals with his partners, Korean Air announced on Monday the purchase of more than 100 Boeing planes for some $50 billion.