Trump on Korean Developments: Everything is Going Well

The President of the United States has discussed recent developments on the Korean Peninsula with his South Korean counterpart and the Prime Minister of Japan. Trump stated, "Everything is going well," and mentioned that a meeting regarding North Korea will take place "in three or four weeks." On April 27, Donald Trump had a lengthy and very good phone conversation with Moon Jae-in, the President of South Korea, and also updated Shinzo Abe, the Prime Minister of Japan, on the events. Trump tweeted, "Everything is going well." He also mentioned during a speech in Michigan, "I think we will have a meeting in the next three or four weeks." Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, and Donald Trump are set to meet face-to-face to discuss denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula. If this meeting occurs, it will be the first time a sitting U.S. president meets with a North Korean leader. The South Korean presidential office stated that during the conversation between Trump and Moon, both sides "agreed to work closely together to ensure that the upcoming meeting (between Kim and Trump) leads to an agreement on specific steps for denuclearization in North Korea." Following their meeting on Friday, the leaders of the two Koreas issued a statement emphasizing that both sides will move towards achieving a peace treaty and denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula. Since the end of the Korean War in 1953, the two countries have been in a state of temporary ceasefire. North Korean state media also stated on Saturday, in a nearly unprecedented move, that "North Korea and South Korea have emphasized that their common goal is to create a nuclear-free peninsula, which will be achieved through complete denuclearization." North Korea has described its military nuclear program as an inseparable part of its political life, a deterrent, and a factor for balance; thus, the publication of the official text of the negotiations between the two Korean leaders and the emphasis on "complete denuclearization" received widespread attention. Donald Trump stated yesterday that pressures on Pyongyang will continue, but he believes it is his duty to reach an agreement with the North Korean leader in the coming weeks.