Following G20, Trump to visit the DMZ in hopes of meeting Kim

This is Trump's second presidential visit to South Korea

US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the White House on April 11, 2019. Alex Wong/Getty Images

US President Donald Trump's visit to Seoul today marks his second trip as President to South Korea.

His last visit was in November 2017, as part of a larger tour of Pacific nations where he met with other world leaders including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

That 2017 visit had come as tensions heightened over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. While in Seoul, Trump had stressed the urgency of curbing North Korea's advances, saying "North Korea is a worldwide threat that requires worldwide action."

He had also attempted to visit to the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North Korea and South Korea, but was forced to turn back because of bad weather.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un received a "personal letter" from US President Donald Trump according to North Korean state news agency KCNA. KCNA

Since then, Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have met at two summits, in Singapore and Vietnam. The two leaders have also exchanged complimentary letters to each other; earlier this month, Trump told reporters about a "beautiful letter" he received from Kim, and last week, Kim said he received an "excellent" personal letter from Trump.

13 min ago

Xi visited North Korea for the first time two weeks ago

From CNN’s Joshua Berlinger and Ben Westcott

Xi Jinping's first state visit to Pyongyang, where he met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. KCNA

US President Donald Trump's visit to the Korean Peninsula comes less than two weeks since China's Xi Jinping made his first trip to North Korea as President.

The visit was the first by a Chinese leader to North Korea since 2005, before the country ramped up its nuclear weapons testing.

The two countries are celebrating the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year. Xi’s trip was largely a symbolic affair, punctuated with official meetings.

Much of the coverage of the trip in Chinese state media addressed ongoing tensions with Washington.

Xi told Kim "the international community" was hoping for further successful talks between North Korea and the US on denuclearization, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.

Both countries’ state media coverage was filled with paeans to the historical relationship between China and North Korea, ignoring the recent rocky years between the two countries -- during which time Kim executed and purged pro-China officials, and Xi approved UN sanctions against North Korea as punishment for their nuclear weapons development.

Read more about the evolving relationship between Xi, Trump, and Kim here.

28 min ago

Closing north side of the DMZ to tourists unusual, expert says

From CNN's Steve George

The north side of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between the Koreas has been closed to tourists ahead of an expected meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to Koryo Tours, which organizes visits to the northern side.

"That doesn’t happen often," Koryo Tours general manager Simon Cockerell told CNN. "Suggests something is going on."

Cockerell added that the north side wouldn't be closed "just because someone is visiting from the south, it’s been open when various VIPs have been there" on the southern side of the de facto border.

35 min ago

Trump: "I've been told that Kim Jong Un would like to meet"

 

US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have sat down for a working lunch following their bilateral meeting earlier this morning.

"I've been told that Kim Jong Un would like to meet, and that it looks like they're in final stages of working out a very quick meeting, because I'll be at the DMZ anyway, the border," Trump said at the start of the lunch.

"I look forward to saying hello to him if that all finally works out... It sounds like the teams would like to have that work out," he added.

35 min ago

If Trump visits North Korea today, he will be the first sitting US president to do so

US President Bill Clinton uses binoculars to look across the demilitarized zone (DMZ) into North Korea on July 11, 1993. LUKE FRAZZA/AFP/Getty Images

Later today, US President Trump will head to the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas -- his first visit to the border. It remains to be seen if North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will drop by as well.

If Trump crosses the border into North Korea, he will be the first sitting US president to do so.

Only two former presidents have made visits to North Korea: Jimmy Carter, in June 1994, Bill Clinton in August 2009, and Carter again in August 2010. Both visited after they had left office.

However, high-ranking US officials have visited the country before. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has visited four times, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visited in 2000 while serving under the Clinton administration.

25 min ago

China reacts to Trump-Xi meeting

From CNN's James Griffiths

 

Susan Walsh/AP

Chinese state media has reacted approvingly to US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping's meeting at the G20 on Saturday, in which they agreed to restart trade talks between the two nations.

Here's the official state news agency Xinhua:

The outcomes of the highly anticipated meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the G20 Osaka summit on Saturday have shone a ray of light upon the clouded global economy.

Restarting trade talks "means that the efforts to resolve the trade differences between the two countries are back onto the right track," Xinhua added.

Meanwhile, the Global Times, a state-run tabloid, took a more skeptical tone, saying the agreement was "in line with the best expectations of international public opinion."

Given the fact that the Sino-US trade talks have run hot and cold in the past, opinions are divided over whether the new round of trade talks will successfully do the job.

The agreement has broken the deadlock between China and the US. However, Beijing and Washington still face the arduous task of implementing the consensus reached between the two presidents while overcoming differences during the negotiations.

"It is not a big surprise for Xi and Trump to reach such an agreement," Global Times added. "Such a result is undoubtedly in the interests of both the Chinese and US societies as it frees people in both countries from the fear of an escalating trade war."

In a separate piece, Xinhua also waxed effusive about Xi having "led a chorus for safeguarding multilateralism and charting the course for the world economy and global governance."

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com