US President Donald Trump has once again spotlighted his close relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump made the remarks on Tuesday while answering a question about why North Korea could possess nuclear weapons while Iran was being prevented from acquiring them.
“He happens to be a friend of mine. Kim Jong Un is a friend of mine,” the US President said. “He likes Trump…I’m about the only person in the entire world that he likes, and I like him. As long as I’m around, he’s going to be fine. You know why? Because he respects me and he likes me.”
Trump also acknowledged that North Korea had a “pretty large” nuclear capability. He blamed previous US administrations for failing to stop Pyongyang from developing its arsenal.
Enemies to friends?
Trump and Kim’s relationship has gone through a transformation over the years. During Trump’s first presidency, the two leaders initially traded threats. Trump warned of “fire and fury” as North Korea continued its nuclear and missile tests.
That changed in 2018 when Trump and Kim met in Singapore. It was the first meeting between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader. The two sides agreed to work towards new US-North Korea relations and the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.
The diplomacy continued with a second summit in Hanoi in February 2019 but the meeting ended without an agreement. The main dispute was over how much of North Korea’s nuclear programme should be dismantled and what sanctions relief Pyongyang would receive in return.
In June 2019, Trump met Kim again at the Demilitarised Zone. Trump briefly crossed into North Korea, becoming the first sitting US president to do so. Trump and Kim have not met in person since then.
When Trump posted a throwback photo with Kim
In August, Trump shared an old photograph of himself with Kim on Truth Social. He said that despite the “unfriendly look” in the picture, the two had many moments when they were smiling and “get along GREAT”.
Trump later said he was unhappy about the US participation in the military exercises with South Korea because of his relationship with Kim.
Trump wants another meeting with Kim
Trump has been pushing his aides to arrange another meeting with Kim, potentially during a planned Asia trip around the APEC summit in China in November, Reuters reported earlier, citing a report.
The US President has continued to speak positively about Kim during his second presidency. In August, Trump again referred to his “very good relationship” with the North Korean leader while ordering the Pentagon to substantially reduce US-South Korea military exercises.
Trump said the exercises were costly and sent an “inappropriate and hostile” signal to North Korea.
Trump also linked the decision to Seoul’s refusal to join the US effort against Iran. He said South Korea had declined his request to help with the “denuclearisation” of Iran.
North Korea, a nuclear power
North Korea is already a nuclear-armed state. It conducted its first nuclear test in 2006 and carried out six nuclear tests through 2017.
North Korea has assembled about 60 nuclear warheads at the start of this year and had enough fissile material to potentially produce at least 30 more, SIPRI’s 2026 assessment estimates. The institute also says Pyongyang continues to expand its nuclear capabilities and develop new missile systems.
