Trump Confirms Plans for Third Meeting With Kim Jong Un, Reveals North Korea Has 57 Nuclear Weapons
President Donald J. Trump confirmed Wednesday that he plans to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, setting the stage for a third face-to-face summit between the two leaders as Trump once again turns to personal diplomacy in dealing with the nuclear-armed regime.
Trump did not announce an exact date or location for the meeting. Reports have suggested the summit could take place in November, when the president is expected to travel to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump defended his relationship with Kim and argued that his ability to communicate directly with the North Korean leader is an advantage for the United States.
“I get along with him, and you know what? The fact that I get along with him, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing,” Trump said.
Trump and Kim developed an unprecedented relationship during Trump’s first term. They first met in Singapore in 2018 before holding another summit in Hanoi in 2019. Trump later became the first sitting American president to step into North Korea when he met Kim at the Demilitarized Zone.
The president also made a striking disclosure Wednesday about the size of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, telling reporters that Kim possesses “57 very powerful nuclear weapons.” Previous intelligence estimates have generally placed Pyongyang’s active arsenal between roughly 50 and 60 warheads, but Trump’s statement marked the first time an American official has publicly provided such a specific number.
Trump blamed previous administrations for allowing North Korea’s nuclear program to reach its current scale. He argued that the regime should never have been permitted to accumulate such a substantial arsenal and maintained that the situation would have developed differently had he been president earlier.
“Should have never allowed it to happen,” Trump said. “They should have never allowed it. If I were president, I wouldn’t have allowed it. But he’s got them.”
The potential summit comes as Trump has again signaled interest in reducing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. His administration has recently moved to scale back certain military exercises involving South Korea, while Trump has continued emphasizing his personal relationship with Kim.
Trump’s approach represents a return to the high-level diplomacy that defined his first-term dealings with North Korea. Rather than leaving negotiations entirely to diplomats and lower-level officials, Trump has repeatedly argued that direct conversations between national leaders can break through disputes that traditional diplomacy has failed to resolve.
Major questions nevertheless remain about what Trump will seek from Kim during another summit. North Korea has continued expanding its nuclear and missile capabilities since their previous meetings, making any potential agreement over denuclearization, sanctions or military tensions considerably more complicated.
But Trump is making clear that he believes direct engagement remains worthwhile. With North Korea now possessing what the president says are 57 powerful nuclear weapons, Trump is preparing to sit across the table from Kim once again and test whether their unusual relationship can produce a breakthrough that has eluded Washington for decades.