Newsletters
A summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could be possible “at any time,” South Korea’s intelligence agency said Tuesday, citing signs of dialogue despite no confirmed direct contact between Washington and Pyongyang.
South Korean lawmaker Youn Kun-young said the National Intelligence Service made the assessment during a briefing to the National Assembly’s intelligence committee.
“Regarding the North Korea-U.S. summit, there was an analysis that it should be viewed as possible at any time,” Youn told reporters.
He added that while there was no confirmed evidence of concrete contact between the two sides, the agency had identified “signs of dialogue.”
Trump said in August that he planned to meet Kim again and stressed the importance of maintaining good relations with the North Korean leader.
He also said Pyongyang possessed 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons.
North Korea later said Kim had “good memories and feelings” about Trump and described their relationship as “excellent,” but did not clearly respond to Trump’s overtures.
Trump said on Aug. 19 that he could meet Kim toward the end of this year.
Washington also scaled back joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises in August, cutting the Ulchi Freedom Shield drills from 11 days to five.
Hours after Trump’s remarks about getting along with Kim, North Korea fired more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area.
Kim Yo Jong, Kim’s influential sister, later described the reduced exercises as Seoul’s “comeuppance.”
Separate maritime exercises involving the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, scheduled to begin Sept. 7, have also drawn criticism from Pyongyang.
Analyst Yang Moo-jin, former president of the University of North Korean Studies, said North Korea may have limited incentive to pursue talks with Washington amid its closer ties with Russia and heightened tensions involving South Korea, the U.S., and Japan.
Trump met Kim three times during his first term in negotiations aimed at securing a denuclearization agreement, but the talks produced no tangible progress.
In October 2025, Trump described North Korea as “sort of a nuclear power” and said he was “100 percent” open to meeting Kim again.
China remains a major trading partner and source of diplomatic and economic support for North Korea, which is subject to multiple international sanctions.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has pursued engagement with Pyongyang since taking office in June 2025, but North Korea has rejected Seoul’s overtures, calling South Korea its “most hostile” enemy and declaring itself an “irreversible” nuclear state.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
