DONALD Trump welcomed North Korea’s promising response to his abrupt withdrawal from a summit next month and said “we’re talking to them now” about putting it back on track.
The US president, who often boasts about his negotiating tactics, said: “Everybody plays games.”
Trump said it was even possible the summit could take place on the originally planned date of June 12. “They very much want to do it, we’d like to do it,” he said.
Earlier he had called the North’s reaction to his letter cancelling the summit “warm and productive”.
Trump wrote to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Thursday to say he no longer intended to attend, blaming “tremendous anger and open hostility” from Pyongyang for the US withdrawal.
The tone from both sides was warmer yesterday. First, North Korea issued a statement saying it was still “willing to give the US time and opportunities” to reconsider talks “at any time, at any format”.
Vice-foreign minister Kim Kye Gwan said the cancellation of the talks showed “how grave the status of historically deep-rooted hostile North Korea-US relations is and how urgently a summit should be realised to improve ties”.
Trump replied saying it was “very good news”, and “we will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!”
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