SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - A day after insisting Iran "cannot have a nuclear weapon," United States President Donald Trump called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a friend on Tuesday and acknowledged his "pretty large nuclear capacity," claiming the nuclear regime could be contained as long as he was in power.
On Aug. 19, Trump claimed North Korea had "57 very powerful nuclear weapons," without citing the source of the claim while then-South Korean defense minister Ahn Gyu-back gave lawmakers a higher estimate of 80 to 120 weapons.
Speaking to reporters on the White House driveway after a luncheon with technology executives in the East Room. the U.S. president blamed his predecessors for failing to stop North Korea's weapons program, then turned to his personal ties with Kim.
"He's a friend of mine. He likes Trump," he said, adding later, "And I like him."
After acknowledging that Kim "does have a pretty large nuclear capacity," he offered an assurance. "As long as I'm around, he's going to be fine," President Trump said.
His assurance about Kim repeated one he gave last month. On Aug. 19, while touring a new helipad on the South Lawn, President Trump told reporters, "I know Kim Jong-un very well, and he's going to be fine as long as we have a smart president." He also said he would meet Kim before the end of the year.
Those remarks came three days after he ordered the Pentagon to "substantially reduce" Ulchi Freedom Shield, the annual combined military exercise between South Korea and the United States. The drills had been scheduled to run 11 days from Aug. 17. They ended after five.
Pyongyang answered with mixed signals. In a statement carried by state media on Aug. 20, Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's sister, said she was "not aware" of President Trump's claim that he was in contact with Kim. She called the drill reduction "unworthy of comment" but said Kim had "good memories and feelings" about President Trump personally.
Trump did not mention North Korea in his Sept. 22 address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York. He devoted parts of that speech to Iran, Cuba and Venezuela.
He is scheduled to travel to Shenzhen, China, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on Nov. 18 and 19, after accepting an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping.
President Trump and Kim have met three times. They met in Singapore in June 2018, in Hanoi in February 2019 and at Panmunjom on the inter-Korean border in June 2019, and none of those meetings produced an agreement to curb North Korea's nuclear program.
AJP Takeaways
- President Donald Trump called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a friend at the White House on Tuesday, acknowledged his "pretty large nuclear capacity," and said Kim would be fine as long as Trump is around, a day after insisting Iran "cannot have a nuclear weapon."
- President Trump made a nearly identical pledge on Aug. 19, when he put North Korea's arsenal at "57 very powerful nuclear weapons" and said he would meet Kim before the end of the year, three days after ordering the Pentagon to substantially reduce the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise with South Korea.
- South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back gave lawmakers a higher estimate of 80 to 120 North Korean nuclear weapons on Aug. 20, the same day Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's sister, said in state media that she was "not aware" of President Trump's claimed contact with Kim. Both details were added by AJP from the public record beyond the original wire report.
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