During his first term in office, Trump met with Kim on three occasions between 2018 and 2019.
US President Donald Trump said he plans to reach out to North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un following his return to the White House.
Trump was asked about his plans for Kim during an interview on Thursday and whether he would “reach out”.
“I will, yeah. He liked me,” Trump said.
Trump and Kim had an unusually strong rapport during the president’s first term in office for two nations at odds since the Korean War some 70 years ago. Trump has previously described their relationship as “very, very good” and has referred to Kim as a “smart guy” in the media.
During his first term in office, Trump met with Kim on three separate occasions between 2018 and 2019.
In 2019, he made history as the first sitting US president to visit North Korea since a 1953 armistice brought a de facto end to the Korean War.
Following his re-election in November, Trump’s team said they were weighing reopening “direct talks” with Kim.
Trump’s close relationship with Kim, however, has put him at odds in the past with South Korea, a US treaty ally, and potentially even members of his own cabinet as he heads into his second term in office.
Senator Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for secretary of state, described Kim as a “dictator” at his Senate confirmation hearing and called for a “very serious look at broader North Korean policies”.
