US President on Asia trip: Trump would like to meet with Kim Jong Un

In the coming days, US President Trump will travel to several Asian countries. He said the program could be expanded to include a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. South Korea even considers such a meeting highly likely.

US President Donald Trump has embarked on his first trip to Asia in his second term, during which he said he would also like to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. On Sunday, Trump is expected to visit Malaysia, where the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit is taking place. On Monday, Trump will travel to Tokyo, where he plans to meet with the new Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi.

On Wednesday, Trump is expected in South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. He is scheduled to meet with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. On Thursday, he is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time since Trump took office again in January.

During his trip to Asia, Trump said he would also like to meet with North Korean leader Kim. Asked whether a meeting was possible, the US president said: "I would love to, he knows we're coming." Trump continued: "I don't know. He knows I'm coming." The 79-year-old and Kim last met in 2019 during Trump's first term in office, which ran from 2017 to 2021. "I get along very well with him," Trump said.

When asked by journalists whether he would recognize North Korea as a nuclear power, Trump said: "I think they are some kind of nuclear power." The country has "many nuclear weapons," the US president said aboard his government aircraft, Air Force One.

The South Korean government assumes that Trump could shake hands with Kim. Various signs point to the "high probability of a meeting," said South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong Young. Kim stated before Trump's Asia trip that he had "fond memories" of the US president.