President Trump said Thursday that his high-stakes denuclearization summit next week with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will be “more than a photo-op.”
Hosting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the White House for key talks ahead of the summit, Mr. Trump he’s well-prepared for the showdown with North Korea in Singapore on Tuesday and hopes it will be “fruitful.”
“I don’t think I have to prepare very much,” Mr. Trump said. “It’s about the attitude. It’s about willingness to get things done. But I think I’ve been preparing for the summit for a long time.”
He rejected the accusation of former Democratic U.N. Ambassador Bill Richardson and other Democrats that the summit will be largely for show.
“It’s going to be much more than a photo-op,” the president said. “I think it’s a process. I think it’s not a one-meeting deal.”
He said of North Korea, “They’ve been preparing for a long time, also. So this isn’t a question of preparation, it’s a question of whether or not people want it to happen, and we’ll know that very quickly.”
Conferring with Mr. Abe in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said the summit “is all ready to go.” But given the touch-and-go nature of the negotiations so far, the president added that his plans are “subject always to change.”
Referring to North Korea’s history of backing away from agreements, he said Pyongyang has been “doing this for a long time.”
“They’ve got a lot of enemies out there,” Mr. Trump said. “A lot of dislike, a lot of hatred between countries. This will not be just a photo-op. This will be at a minimum, we’ll start with perhaps a good relationship.”
Mr. Abe wants to ensure that Mr. Trump raises Japan’s concerns at the summit, such as a deal that addresses North Korea’s short-range missiles and its abduction of Japanese citizens over several decades.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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