South Korea says Kim, Trump may meet next week
SEOUL
South Korea's unification minister said on Oct. 24 he believed there was a "considerable" chance that U.S. President Donald Trump will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a visit to the peninsula next week.
Trump is expected in South Korea on Oct. 29 for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum.
U.S. media have reported officials from his administration have privately discussed setting up a meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim, who he last held talks with in 2019.
North Korea appears "to be paying attention to the United States and various signs... suggest a considerable possibility of a meeting," Unification Minister Chung Dong-young told reporters.
Trump has said he hopes to meet Kim again, possibly this year.
Kim said last month he had "fond memories" of Trump and was open to talks if the United States dropped its "delusional" demand that Pyongyang give up its nuclear weapons.
Seoul on Oct. 29 urged the two leaders not to let the chance "slip away".
While no official announcements of the duo's meeting have been made, South Korea and the United Nations Command halted tours of the Joint Security Area (JSA) from late October to early November.
Kim and Trump last met in 2019 at Panmunjom in the JSA in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas -- the only place where soldiers from both sides face each other on a regular basis.
