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Trump: S'pore summit moving 'very nicely'

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His remarks come as N. Korea's Kim Jong Un meets S. Korea's Moon Jae In, commits to 'denuclearisation'

WASHINGTON Two days after he told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that their June 12 summit was off, US President Donald Trump has revived hopes that it will proceed as scheduled.

Late on Saturday (US time), he said that things are moving "very nicely" towards the summit in Singapore.

Mr Trump told reporters at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela: "It's moving along very nicely.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed. So we'll see what happens."

His remarks came as South Korean President Moon Jae In said yesterday that Mr Kim was still committed to denuclearisation after their surprise meeting on Saturday.

"What is unclear to Chairman Kim Jong Un is not the will for denuclearisation, but the concern that if (North Korea) denuclearises, whether the US can end hostile relations and guarantee the security of the (Kim) regime," Mr Moon said.

The latest conciliatory declaration from Pyongyang came as the White House confirmed it was sending a team to Singapore to prepare for the talks - a further signal that both sides were moving to cool tensions after a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship, AFP reported.

US officials also entered North Korea yesterday to hold talks on preparations for a possible summit, a US newspaper reported.

The Washington Post, citing a person familiar with the arrangements, said Mr Sung Kim, a former US ambassador to South Korea and former nuclear negotiator with the North, was leading the US team, which met Mr Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice-foreign minister.

Mr Trump had rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Mr Kim, citing "tremendous anger and open hostility" from Pyongyang.

'GOODWILL'

But within 24 hours, he had reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"There are meetings going on as we speak," he said. "I think there's a lot of goodwill."

During their two-hour meeting at North Korea's side of the truce village of Panmunjom, Mr Moon said Mr Kim agreed with him on the need to have direct communication with Washington to remove misunderstandings, and to have sufficient dialogue ahead of the planned summit, The Straits Times reported.

What was uncertain to Mr Kim was US intentions, said Mr Moon. He also acknowledged that Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what "denuclearisation" means, and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences, Reuters reported.

"Even though they share the same resolve, there need to be discussions regarding the roadmap for how to make it happen, and that process could be tough," Mr Moon said, declining to define "complete denuclearisation."

China's Foreign Ministry said yesterday it hoped the summit could happen as planned and be successful.

Direct dialogue between the two leaders is crucial to resolving the nuclear issue, it added.

But North Korea watchers have previously warned that things have been moving too fast, and urged Washington to hold more preparatory meetings in the run-up to a formal summit, CNN reported.

CNN global affairs analyst Joseph Yun said a joint declaration of some sort on June 12 was far more likely, given the short time period to iron out differences before Mr Trump and Mr Kim meet.

"Let's be realistic. These summits take months not weeks to prepare," he said.

Mr Trump took to Twitter on Saturday to angrily dismiss media speculation that the summit, even if reinstated, could not be held in the existing time frame.

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