The Donald Trump administration is reportedly discussing the possibility of a private meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during Trump’s planned tour of Asia next month, according to CNN and Reuters on Saturday, citing multiple sources.
The Trump administration has been discussing the possibility of a summit between the United States and North Korea, but no concrete schedule or substantial plan for such a meeting has been established, according to the reports.
The sources cited by the news outlets also said that, unlike during Trump’s first term, there is currently no active direct communication channel between Washington and Pyongyang. Additional sources said Trump first attempted to make contact with Kim’s side earlier this year, but the North never accepted the letter, resulting in no reply.
With tensions rising again between Washington and Beijing over trade issues, the White House is reportedly more focused on preparing for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping than arranging one with Kim during the upcoming Asia trip, according to CNN.
The South Korean government is also closely monitoring the possibility of a U.S.-North Korea summit but said no concrete developments have been detected so far.
Kang Kyung-wha, South Korea’s new ambassador to the United States, told the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee on Friday that while Trump had expressed openness to dialogue and North Korea had shown some signs of interest, “there is no indication yet that anything will materialize on the sidelines of the APEC summit.”
![U.S. President Donald Trump meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb. 27, 2019. [AP/YONHAP]](https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/10/19/0000078421_002_20251019123912368.jpg?type=w860)
“The possibility [of a Trump-Kim meeting] remains open and we are monitoring the situation,” Kang added.
Trump and Kim previously met during Trump's first term — in Singapore in 2018 and Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2019.
The two leaders also held an impromptu meeting at the inter-Korean border in June 2019. While attending the Group of 20 summit in Japan, Trump posted a tweet on June 29 of that year proposing a meeting with Kim at Panmunjom. Just five hours later, North Korea issued a positive statement, and the meeting was held the following day.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
'">
'">
'">
