Kim Jong-un courts others amid rift in ‘great relationship’ with Donald Trump
- ‘When all the fluff blows away … there was no real meat there to grab on to,’ said Jung Pak, a former senior CIA official
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Nahal Toosi on politico.com on April 26, 2019.
US President Donald Trump may think his “great relationship” with Kim Jong-un will ultimately result in a nuclear deal, but the North Korean leader is flirting with other suitors in an apparent attempt to pressure Washington into easing sanctions on his country.
The increasingly visible US-North Korean rift threatens what Trump had hoped could be a signature talking point for his 2020 re-election campaign. Even administration officials aren’t promising any imminent breakthroughs, leaving Trump almost singular in his stated confidence, which he reiterated on Friday.
“I think we're doing very well with North Korea. A lot of progress is being made,” he said, adding later, “I have a great relationship with Kim Jong-un.”
Trump is expected to discuss the subject on Friday during Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit with to the White House.
The get-together comes the same week Kim met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and accused the United States of having a “unilateral attitude in bad faith”, likely troubling Japan.