Trump says Kim Jong Un likes him, cites safety of US, allies

Trump says Kim Jong Un "didn't like" Biden, Obama but "likes me"; highlights ties making US, allies safer

Washington, DC, August 20

"I do have a good relationship with Kim Jong Un, as you know, you've seen. He didn't like Biden, he didn't like Obama, he didn't like anybody, but he likes me, and I just got along with him very good," Trump told reporters while addressing technology leaders.

"We had great meetings; we speak. And I think our nation and I think other nations, frankly, whether it's Japan or South Korea, they're a lot safer if I'm President than if somebody else is President," he added.

Trump said he did not favour large-scale military exercises with South Korea while maintaining a positive relationship with Kim, calling the drills inappropriate.

"I didn't like the fact that we're doing these massive military exercises really against North Korea. It was an exercise against North Korea when I'm friendly with him," Trump said.

"I don't see anything happening for certainly two and a half years; it's not going to happen with me. But I don't see anything happening," he added.

Trump also said he was unhappy with South Korea's refusal to assist the US over the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, noting that the country receives a significant portion of its oil supplies through the strategic waterway.

"I was not happy when South Korea said no; they're not interested in helping us with the Hormuz Strait, and yet they get 60% of their oil from the Hormuz Strait. I said, 'Would you like to help us?' He said, 'No, thank you.' I said, 'That's nice, please, thank you. He made us a lot of money.' I didn't like that. So I felt that to do a massive... we were doing a massive war exercise, I thought that was very insulting to somebody that frankly has been, during my term at least, very well-behaved," he said.

Trump's remarks came after he confirmed that he expects to meet Kim Jong Un later this year.

Earlier, on being asked about a possible meeting with the North Korean leader, Trump said, "Yeah, I will be. I'll be doing this too."

Highlighting his personal ties with Kim, Trump said, "I get along with him, right. And you know what, the fact that I get along with him, that's a good thing, not a bad thing."

Trump also referred to North Korea's nuclear capabilities, saying Kim has "57 very powerful nuclear weapons" and arguing that such a stockpile should not have been allowed to develop.

"He's got 'em. I get along with him very well. You can't let Iran have a nuclear weapon," Trump said.

Earlier, Trump had said Kim had treated him with "great respect" and that their communication had contributed to making the Korean Peninsula safer.

"Kim Jong Un has always treated me with great respect, and we met on two primary occasions, spoke, and spent time. I understand him. He understands me. I get along with him," Trump had said.

Trump recently instructed US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to "substantially reduce" joint military exercises with South Korea, citing his relationship with Kim and describing the drills as costly and inappropriate.

During his first term, Trump and Kim held three face-to-face meetings between 2018 and 2019. Their first meeting took place at the Singapore Summit in June 2018, followed by talks in Hanoi in February 2019 and a meeting at the Korean Demilitarized Zone in June 2019, where Trump became the first sitting US President to step into North Korea.

The leaders had agreed to work towards improving bilateral relations and pursuing denuclearisation talks, though negotiations later stalled over differences regarding sanctions relief and the scope of nuclear dismantlement.

— ANI