Trump announces planned meeting with Kim

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un later this year, signaling a revival of the personal diplomacy that marked his first term. Asked by reporters at the White House whether he planned to meet Kim in 2026, Trump replied, "Yeah, I will be." The meeting would be their first during Trump's second term.

Trump's remarks came a day after The Wall Street Journal reported that he was pushing aides to arrange an in-person meeting with Kim, potentially during a trip to Asia in November for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China. Trump did not elaborate on the timing or location of the planned meeting.

Nuclear weapons figure draws attention

During the press availability, Trump made an unusually specific disclosure about North Korea's arsenal, saying Kim possesses 57 "very powerful" nuclear weapons. "Should have never allowed it to happen... If I were president, I wouldn't have allowed it," Trump said, adding, "But he's got them. I get along with him very well."

The figure marked the first time Trump has cited a specific number for North Korea's nuclear stockpile. The US government does not publicly publish an official estimate of North Korea's arsenal and does not officially recognize the country as a nuclear state. Trump's mention of 57 weapons is broadly in line with previous assessments: the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimated in June that North Korea had "possibly assembled around 60 warheads" and enough fissile material to produce at least 30 more. A 2025 Congressional Research Service report cited non-governmental experts estimating that North Korea could produce up to 90 warheads but may have assembled approximately 50.

Trump framed his relationship with Kim as a stabilizing factor. "I know Kim Jong-un very well, and he's going to be fine as long as we have a smart president," he said. "As long as we have a smart president, he's gonna be fine. If we have a dumb president, then he's probably not going to be so fine." He also said that getting along with Kim is "a good thing, not a bad thing."

Kim Yo-jong casts doubt on communications

Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's sister and a key official, responded to reports of communication between Trump and Kim by saying she was "unaware" of any recent exchanges. In a statement carried by North Korean state media, she said she knew "absolutely nothing" about the supposed communications, while acknowledging that the relationship between the two leaders was "excellent" and that Kim had "good memories and feelings" about Trump.

At the same time, Kim Yo-jong reiterated that the United States remained an enemy of Pyongyang. "The United States' hostile policy toward the DPRK has not changed," she said, adding that Washington and its allies were "vigorously carrying out hostile military activities against the DPRK even at this very moment." She also dismissed the reduction of US-South Korea drills as "unworthy of comment."

Scaling back military drills

Trump's announcement followed his decision on Sunday to order the Pentagon to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea. The exercises in question were the Ulchi Freedom Shield drills, an 11-day annual event designed to prepare for a possible war with North Korea. Trump said the exercises were costly and sent a "totally inappropriate and hostile" signal to North Korea, adding that they were "very insulting" to Kim, who he said had been "very well behaved." He also said North Korea had been "unthreatening and respectful" while he has been in the White House.

The scaled-back drills were reduced from 11 days to five. The Pentagon said the reduced exercises would cause "no degradation to US training objectives." Colonel Ryan Donald said the exercises would simulate combat against North Korean troops hardened by deployment in Ukraine.

South Korean officials responded cautiously. President Lee Jae Myung recognized Trump's "will and efforts to create conditions for dialogue" with North Korea, while Seoul's presidential office said the drills did not reflect "any intention to attack North Korea or escalate tensions." North Korea, which has long decried the drills as dress rehearsals for an invasion, denounced them as the actions of "warmongers."

US Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat, criticized Trump's decision, calling it "another inane, haphazard decision."

Broader context and reactions

Trump's renewed focus on Kim comes amid a complex geopolitical backdrop. The United States stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea, and the USS George Washington aircraft carrier is being redeployed to the Middle East. North Korea recently test-fired a ballistic missile over the Sea of Japan.

Trump also used the occasion to rebuke South Korea for failing to help Washington in its war with Iran. He said South Korea had 39,000 soldiers guarding it and called its refusal to help "strange." He noted that South Korea gets 60 percent of its oil from the Strait of Hormuz and expressed displeasure that Seoul had not helped secure the strait, which he claimed the United States has "complete control" of.

Analysts offered varying interpretations of Trump's motives. Yong-Chool Ha, director of the Center for Korean Studies at the Henry Jackson School of International Studies in Washington, told Al Jazeera that Trump's approach could be "tit-for-tat diplomacy" to pressure South Korea. Rachel Minyoung Lee suggested that Trump may have used the drills as leverage to expedite South Korea's investment and increase defence cost-sharing, "killing two birds with one stone."

Trump's history with Kim includes three meetings during his first term: in Singapore in June 2018, Hanoi in February 2019, and at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom in June 2019, where Trump became the first sitting US president to step into North Korean territory. The 2018 summit produced a joint statement committing to the "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean Peninsula, but subsequent talks stalled over US demands for denuclearization. Trump has since referred to North Korea as a "nuclear power."

During his first term, Trump also demanded a sharp increase in South Korea's contribution to hosting US troops, renegotiated a free trade agreement with Seoul, and imposed tariffs on South Korean steel. North Korea, for its part, has expanded its missile and nuclear capabilities and developed close military ties with Russia, including deploying troops to support Moscow's war in Ukraine and signing a mutual defense treaty in 2024.

Trump declined to say whether he is exchanging written letters with Kim, telling reporters, "I can't tell you that." He also refused to answer whether his goal in reengaging with Kim is still denuclearization, saying, "I don't want to talk about that, but I do have a good relationship with Kim Jong-un." He added that Kim "didn't like Biden or Obama, but he likes me."

Observers have speculated that Trump's renewed attention to North Korea may reflect a desire for a foreign policy win as the Iran war drags on, ahead of the US midterm elections in November. Questions remain over whether Kim will respond positively, given North Korea's cooperation with Russia and improved ties with China.