President Donald Trump is confident his historic meeting with Kim Jong Un will lead to the denuclearization of North Korea. After meeting in Singapore, the two leaders signed a pledge vowing to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. The joint statement gave few details on how that would be achieved, but said Kim reaffirmed his "firm and unwavering commitment" to complete denuclearization, while Trump agreed to provide security guarantees to North Korea.
The document commits both the U.S. and North Korea to follow-up negotiations led by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his North Korean counterpart. Trump praised Kim following the meeting saying he believes he's "very talented" and will follow through on his pledge to disarm in exchange for economic assistance. He said the North Korean leader assured him he would soon destroy a nuclear test site.
When asked by reporters about a possible second summit, Trump said that while one has yet to be set up, there will probably need to be another summit or meeting. He added that Kim accepted an invitation to the White House when the timing is right and that he "really believes" Kim will keep his word.
Trump seemed optimistic about what he called a comprehensive agreement, but critics called the pledge vague. Foreign policy analysts pointed out the agreement only cites intentions to denuclearize and lacks details on how that would be accomplished. It also makes no mention about verification or inspection to ensure North Korea has given up its weapons. It does not include the U.S. demands for a complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of nuclear weapons.
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