US President Donald Trump would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at 9 a.m. Singapore time on June 12, the White House announced on Monday.
“I can tell you the president has been receiving daily briefings on North Korea from his national security team, and I can also tell you the schedule tentatively, for that first meeting will be on June 12 at 9:00 am Singapore time, and take place June 11, 9:00 pm East Coast time,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference.
The Trump administration, she said, is actively preparing for the June 12 summit between the US President and the North Korean leader.
“The advance team in Singapore is finalising logistical preparations and will remain in place until the summit begins. In the DMZ, the US Ambassador’s delegation continues diplomatic negotiations with the North Korean delegation. Discussions have been very positive, and significant progress has been made,” Ms. Sanders said.
Last week, Mr. Trump met with a top North Korean official at the White House to plan for the summit. The official handed him a letter from Kim Jong-un.
“I am not going to get into the specifics of the letter, but as the president said, they were interesting, and we feel like things are continuing to move forward, and good progress has been made, and we’re continuing to prepare for the president’s summit,” Ms. Sanders said.
When asked whether Mr. Trump supports a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, she said the focus of the administration right now was the President’s meeting with the North Korean leader. “And the President will make his views known directly to him when we’re in Singapore, and our focus will continue to be on denuclearisation,” Ms. Sanders said.
Responding to a question on “maximum pressure” policy on North Korea, the press secretary said the US policy towards Pyongyang has not changed. “Our policy hasn’t changed. And as the president stated, we have sanctions on. They’re very powerful, and we would not take those sanctions off unless North Korea denuclearises,” she said.
