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Trump pushes for Kim Jong-un meeting this year: report

The Korea Herald · back to the audit

Trump pushes for Kim Jong-un meeting this year: report

Published : Aug. 19, 2026 - 09:03:29

US President Donald Trump is seeking to revive his personal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, pushing his aides to explore a possible meeting as early as this fall, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

Trump has discussed meeting Kim during a planned trip to Asia, potentially in November when leaders are due to gather in Shenzhen, China, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. No formal preparations for a summit have begun, however, the report said, citing US officials.

The reported push comes as Trump has stepped up his outreach to Pyongyang while taking a more critical stance toward South Korea, a key US ally.

Just before this year's Ulchi Freedom Shield, an annual South Korea-US military exercise, Trump ordered the Pentagon to substantially scale back the drills and touted his "very good relationship" with Kim.

The exercise began Monday and is scheduled to run through Aug. 27, although the US military's participation has reportedly been reduced significantly.

Trump and Kim met three times during Trump's first term, including a 2018 summit in Singapore and a second summit in Hanoi in 2019, but their negotiations failed to produce an agreement on North Korea's nuclear program.