| U.S. President Donald Trump |
“The sanctions are on in full,” Trump told reporters at the White House, Wednesday (local time). “I have not taken sanctions off. I would love to be able to, but in order to do that, we have to do something that is meaningful on the other side.”
The U.S. leader implied that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula will be a long process, saying he hopes to hold more summits with Kim down the road.
“I don't think this will be the last meeting by any chance,” Trump said.
Starting this week, Trump is making remarks on the upcoming summit with Kim on a daily basis, even if his comments do not come with any details on what will be discussed during the much-anticipated meeting. On Tuesday, the U.S. president said he would take enough time in the ongoing dialogue with the North and that he remains in “no rush” to realize complete denuclearization of the peninsula.
Trump and Kim will start their two-day summit in Hanoi, Feb. 27. The meeting is a follow up to the historic Singapore summit last June during which the two leaders reached a broad consensus on the North's nuclear disarmament.
They also agreed to improve diplomatic relations for mutual peace and prosperity.
But as the agreement did not come with any details, such as a specific timeline or methods for the North's denuclearization, both sides failed to generate tangible outcomes in their post-summit negotiations.
Following the first summit, Washington demanded Pyongyang take more concrete steps toward nuclear disarmament, while the North urged the U.S. to take “reciprocal measures” beforehand.
Trump and Kim will likely discuss their views on such issues during their meeting. In recent days, both sides have been engaging in pre-summit discussions to fine-tune any gaps ahead of the leaders' meeting.
With Kim expressing his firm determination for denuclearization and to promote his regime's economic growth, one of the key questions about the summit is whether Trump will offer a gesture in a possible lifting of sanctions as part of a a “big deal.”
The summit is a crucial opportunity for the North to seek possible relief from the economic sanctions imposed by international society.
In a move to make smooth progress in the upcoming summit, the United Nations Security Council permitted the travel of a North Korean delegation to Vietnam's capital next week. As it remains to be seen who will participate in the summit from the North, the UNSC's sanctions committee gave a comprehensive permit to the North Korean delegation's members concerned with the summit.
The host country is also known to have requested the U.N. grant temporary sanctions relief on the delegation from Pyongyang.
Last June, the committee approved the travel of North Korean officials to Singapore to participate in the first Trump-Kim summit.
Meanwhile, despite the rapid approach of the summit, the North has remained silent and not released any statements or articles regarding it.