Seoul Deems Trump-Kim Jong Un Meeting Unlikely
The English section of webangah news Agency, citing mehr News agency and TASS, reports that Seoul considers a spontaneous encounter between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the APEC summit in Seoul unlikely. However, it does not entirely rule out this possibility.
Oh Hyun-joon,Deputy National Security Adviser to South korea’s presidential office,told a press briefing: “Our overall assessment is that there is no specific indication such a meeting will take place.”
He added, “I have no official information regarding this meeting. There are only speculations reported in newspapers.”
In reference to the likelihood of such a meeting,Oh Hyun-joon reminded that the 2019 Kim-Trump summit at the inter-Korean border was arranged within a short period.
He also noted that based on south Korea’s understanding of possible North Korean actions, such a meeting is improbable. Yet he emphasized that North Korea frequently enough “acts contrary to South Korea’s expectations,” so he did not completely dismiss negotiations taking place.
Earlier, Suh Sung-lak, South Korea’s National Security Adviser, expressed a similar stance. He stated Seoul sees no signs of preparations for such a meeting but remains prepared for that scenario.
