(MENAFN) US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that his administration will work "very hard" to broker a peace deal between North Korea and South Korea, expressing confidence that a resolution could be reached over time.

Previous US administrations have attempted to curb the North’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs while fostering improved relations across the Korean Peninsula. Despite limited progress on these longstanding issues, Trump said he is optimistic about eventually achieving a peace agreement.

Speaking to South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, Trump acknowledged that the Koreas remain technically at war following the 1953 armistice, stating: "We'll see what we can do to get that all straightened out."

"We'll work very hard with Kim Jong Un and with everybody on getting things straightened out, because that makes sense," Trump added during brief remarks to reporters while seated with Lee.

"It's common sense that that should work out, and I feel certain that it will, may take a little time, you have to have a little patience, but I feel absolutely certain that it will," he said.

During his first term, Trump met with Kim three times, including a historic 2019 summit at the demilitarized zone—the first occasion a sitting US president stepped into the North. He noted that his team attempted to arrange another meeting during his ongoing five-day Asia tour but "weren't able to work out timing."

For his part, Lee praised Trump for his global peace efforts. “I hope that your peacemaking skills can be applied to the Korean Peninsula, so that we can bring peace on the Korean Peninsula as well,” Lee said, lamenting that a meeting with Kim Jong Un did not materialize.

Lee also announced that South Korea will raise its national defense budget and reiterated calls for “conventionally” armed nuclear-powered submarines.

MENAFN29102025000045017169ID1110263800