Kim Jong Un reportedly agrees to meet Trump at the Korean DMZ
- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reportedly agreed to meet President Donald Trump for a historic meeting in the Korean demilitarized zone, the most heavily armed border in the world.
- Trump appeared on Monday to nod toward meeting Kim at the DMZ, rather than a neutral country, which could benefit the North Korean leader.
- Last year, Trump visited South Korea but skipped a trip to the DMZ after trading mutual threats of nuclear annihilation with Kim.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reportedly agreed to meet President Donald Trump for their historic meeting in the Korean demilitarized zone, the most heavily armed border in the world.
Trump on Monday appeared to nod toward the DMZ as the ideal location for the meeting. On Tuesday, CNN's North Korea correspondent, Will Ripley, cited sources as saying Kim has agreed to the location.
By meeting Kim in Korea, Trump has potentially headed off some potentially embarrassing logistical difficulties for the North Korean leader, who may not have a plane fit to cross the Pacific.
Trump will reportedly meet Kim in the same spot Kim met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday, when Kim made history by being the first North Korean leader to enter the South.
CNN's sources said there's a possibility Kim will invite Trump to enter North Korea, and that parts of the summit may take place in the country where no sitting US president has set foot.
A spokesperson for Moon told CNN they "think Panmunjom is quite meaningful as a place to erode the divide and establish a new milestone for peace."
"Wouldn't Panmunjom (the name of the border village where Moon and Kim met) be the most symbolic place?" the spokesperson added.
In addition to logistical and symbolic appropriateness, the DMZ has broadcasting infrastructure in place and proved capable of capturing the historic moment of Kim and Moon's meeting on Friday.
While Trump seemingly dismissed more neutral locations like Singapore, Switzerland, or Mongolia, to meet with Kim, his nod to the DMZ on Monday seemed to indicate his preference for the spot based on its history.
In 2017, Trump was criticized for visiting Asia and South Korea while skipping a trip to the DMZ. At that time, Trump and Kim had engaged in mutual threats of nuclear annihilation.
But this year, Trump's proposed DMZ meeting with Kim will be the second time a Trump administration official has met the leader on peaceful terms, following Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's surprise visit to North Korea in April.