US President Donald Trump shook the hand of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Tuesday morning local time, an extraordinary display of diplomacy that reflects an unprecedented gamble for two brash leaders' intent on making their mark on history.
The men greeted each other with extended hands in front of a row of US and North Korean flags -- a previously unthinkable sight that reflects a new chapter in the two countries' acrimonious relationship.
Later, Trump said his historic summit with Kim was going "very, very good" and predicted an eventual agreement on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons.
"Excellent relationship," he said as he emerged from one-on-one talks after 48 minutes.
"Working together, we'll get it taken care of," Trump said, positing he could "solve a big problem, a big dilemma" alongside his new partner.
Earlier, Trump patted Kim on the back and placed his hand on the North Korean's shoulder as they walked into their meeting.
"I feel really great. We'll have a great discussion," Trump said at the beginning of the talks.
"This will be tremendously successful," he continued. "We will have a terrific relationship."
Speaking through an interpreter, Kim alluded to the longstanding enmity between his country and the United States.
"It has not been easy to come to this point," Kim said, according to a CNN translation of his remarks. "For us the past has been holding us back, and old practices and prejudices have been covering our eyes and ears, but we have been able to overcome everything to arrive here today."
Trump nodded in agreement.
The meeting comes
only months after the two men traded nuclear taunts, ratcheting up tensions and leading to fears of war.
Trump hopes the talks with the rogue kingdom's despotic leader will amount to a historic breakthrough.
Whether nuclear disarmament is indeed the outcome of Tuesday's summit won't be known for years, if not decades.
But the dramatic act of extending his hand to one of America's longtime adversaries will forever illustrate
Trump's gut-driven, norm-shattering tenure.
Tweeting from his hotel room in the pre-dawn hours on Tuesday, Trump sought to heighten the suspense.
"Meetings between staffs and representatives are going well and quickly....but in the end, that doesn't matter. We will all know soon whether or not a real deal, unlike those of the past, can happen!" he wrote.
After the men shook hands, they repaired inside for one-on-one talks. In that first meeting they were joined only by translators, a break from standard practice of having at least one aide present for high-stakes huddles.
Later in the day, advisers will enter the room for
a larger bilateral session and a working lunch.
The White House said Trump would be joined by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, chief of staff John Kelly, national security adviser John Bolton and the US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, who has lent his Korea expertise to the talks.
In the lead-up to the summit, US and North Korean officials were convening contentious final-hour negotiations in a Ritz Carlton hotel here in a bid to narrow gaps on key aspects of the meeting.
In question is Pyongyang's precise commitment to nuclear disarmament, and the security guarantees the US is willing to offer in return.
The sides first spoke through intelligence channels, with US analysts working to determine Kim's true willingness to abandon a nuclear program started by his grandfather and viewed by Pyongyang as a security blanket from outside aggressors.
Pompeo, who led the outreach as CIA director, traveled twice to North Korea for preliminary talks. His sessions with Kim amounted to the most robust contact ever between the United States and the North Korean leader, providing critical information about a man about whom little is known.
Talks proceeded at multiple levels, including logistical discussions to allay Kim's fears of being deposed while traveling further afield than he ever has before as the country's leader. The site of the historic talks was a matter of intense speculation before the US President announced on Twitter it would occur here in Singapore, the flashy Southeast Asian city-state that has eagerly accommodated the spectacle.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/11/politics/trump-kim-summit-singapore/index.html
