President Donald Trump tells reporters a time and place for his meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong Un has been set and will be announced soon. Photo / AP
President Donald Trump tells reporters a time and place for his meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong Un has been set and will be announced soon. Photo / AP
US President Donald Trump has revealed that a date and venue for his landmark summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have been decided, and will shortly be made public.
Speaking to reporters from the White House before departing for on a trip to Texas, Trump confirmed "we now have a date and we have a location. We'll be announcing it soon."
The President suggested earlier this week that he was looking for the meeting to be held at the demilitarised zone between the two Koreas. That's where Kim met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in last Saturday, reports news.com.au.
US PRISONERS TO BE RELEASED
Trump also seemed to hint at imminent news about three Americans detained in North Korea, as expectations grow that they will be released before the summit as a gesture of goodwill.
"We're having very substantive talks with North Korea and a lot of things have already happened with respect to the hostages," he told reporters.
"As I said yesterday, stay tuned. I think you will be seeing very, very good things."
Kim Dong-chul, a South Korean-born U.S. citizen, was sentenced in April 2016 to 10 years in prison with hard labour after being convicted of espionage. He reportedly ran a trade and hotel service company in Rason, a special economic zone on North Korea's border with Russia.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in embrace each other after signing on a joint statement in a historic meeting at the demilitarised zone in South Korea. Photo / AP
Kim Hak-song, who worked in agricultural development at an experimental farm run by the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, was detained last May for alleged anti-state activities. The university is the only privately funded college in North Korea and was founded in 2010 with donations from Christian groups.
Tony Kim, who also uses the name Kim Sang-duk, was detained a year ago at the Pyongyang airport. He taught accounting at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology and was accused of committing unspecified criminal acts intended to overthrow the government.
WITHDRAWING TROOPS 'NOT ON TABLE'
Speaking to reporters boarding Air Force One, the president was adamant that withdrawing U.S. troops from South Korea is 'not on the table'.
Trump was addressing a report in the The New York Times that he had asked the Pentagon to prepare plans for scaling back the U.S. military presence in South Korea just weeks before he meets with the North Korean leader.
The president has expressed frustration in the past that South Korea does not contribute enough to fund U.S. forces that bolster its defences.
However, National Security Adviser John Bolton called the in The New York Times, "utter nonsense" in a statement today.
