Politics
08:58, 10-Jun-2018
Trump says Singapore meeting is 'one-time shot' for peace with Pyongyang
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A minute is all Donald Trump says it will take for him to know if Kim Jong Un is serious about peace.
The US president was speaking at a news conference on Saturday just before embarking on his marathon journey to Singapore for his historic summit with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader.
Trump bristled with confidence as he boasted that contacts between their respective negotiating teams had been positive.
“I think within the first minute, I’ll know,” he said of the prospects for a deal on denuclearization of Korean Peninsula in the city state.
"I feel that Kim Jong Un wants to do something great for his people and he has that opportunity... It's a one-time shot."
Trump, who was preparing to leave the ongoing G7 summit in Canada early and head to Asia, added that the DPRK side had been working "very well with us."
US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at the G7 summit, June 9, 2018. /AP Photo
US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at the G7 summit, June 9, 2018. /AP Photo
"It's unknown territory in the truest sense but I really feel confident."
After his remarks, Trump headed to the Canadian air base at Bagotville by helicopter before boarding Air Force One and setting off for Singapore, where he was scheduled to arrive late Sunday.
Trump and Kim are to have the first ever US-DPRK summit in Singapore on Tuesday, with the American leader hoping his counterpart will scrap his nuclear weapons program in return for security guarantees.
"I am on a mission of peace and we're going to be carrying the hearts of millions of people from all over the world," he said.
Donald Trump (L) and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un will meet on Tuesday. /AP Photo
Donald Trump (L) and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un will meet on Tuesday. /AP Photo
"We have to get denuclearization, we have to get something going."
Asked about the prospects of striking some kind of peace deal, Trump said: "I think I'll know pretty quickly whether or not, in my opinion, something positive will happen. And if I think it won't happen, I'm not going to waste my time. I don't want to waste his time."
Source(s): AFP