'I Hold Fond Memories Of Donald Trump': North Korea's Kim Jong Un Open To Talks Only If 'US Discards...'

(MENAFN- Live Mint) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un expressed willingness to engage in future discussions with the United States, provided that Washington drops its demand for North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons , according to state media reports on Monday.

Kim also mentioned that he has“fond memories” of his meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump , with whom he held three high-profile summits during Trump's first term.

However, talks ultimately broke down in Hanoi in 2019 due to disagreements over the concessions North Korea was ready to offer.

"If the United States discards its delusional obsession with denuclearisation and, based on recognising reality, truly wishes for peaceful coexistence with us, then there is no reason we cannot meet it," Kim said, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.

Also Read: Donald Trump aims to meet North Korea's Kim Jong Un this year, tells South Korea's new President Lee Jae Myung

The demand that Kim give up his nuclear arsenal has long been a sticking point between the two countries, with Pyongyang under successive rafts of UN sanctions over its banned weapons programmes.

Kim said that sanctions had only helped the North in "growing stronger, building endurance and resistance that cannot be crushed by any pressure".

“I still personally hold fond memories of the current US president, Trump,” Kim added, in a wide-ranging speech to the country's rubber-stamp parliament.

Since the failed 2019 summit, North Korea has repeatedly said it will never give up its nuclear weapons and declared itself an "irreversible" nuclear state.

Kim reiterated that denuclearisation was not an option.

"The world already knows well what the United States does after it forces a country to give up its nuclear arms and disarm," he said.

Also Read: North Korea Slams South Korea Leader Lee Over Nuclear 'Paranoia'

“We will never give up our nuclear weapons.”

Kim also said that he had "no reason to sit down with South Korea", even as Seoul's new President Lee Jae-myung has sought to ease tensions with the North.

"We make it clear that we will not deal with them in any form," he said.

Russia ties

North Korea has in recent years declared the South its principal enemy and blown up rail links and roads that connect the two countries.

Analysts say that the North Korean leader has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow.

North Korea has become one of Russia's main allies since Moscow invaded Ukraine three-and-a-half years ago, sending thousands of soldiers and container loads of weapons to help the Kremlin push Ukrainian forces out of western Russia, following Kyiv's shock incursion last year.

Also Read: Russia, North Korea fighting 'together against modern Nazism', Putin tells Kim Jong Un

Last year, Moscow and Pyongyang signed a mutual defense agreement during Russian President Vladimir Putin 's visit to North Korea .

Seoul has raised concerns over Russia's increasing support for North Korea, particularly regarding the possible transfer of sensitive Russian military technology.

Meanwhile, Trump is likely to visit South Korea next month, coinciding with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, which will be held in the southern city of Gyeongju.

Kim Jong Un , who typically stays within North Korea, made a rare trip to Russia's Far East in 2023. More recently, he visited Beijing this month aboard his armoured train.

During his trip, he stood alongside Russian President Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a large-scale parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.

(With inputs from AFP)

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