Trump, Pompeo Dismiss Kim’s Deadline for Flexibility in Nuclear Talks

Kim Jong Un’s weekend warning that a further summit would be dependent on the US showing new flexibility and coming into the talks with a better attitude came with a deadline of the year’s end. This was a major statement, further worsening the situation after the Hanoi Summit.

South Korea’s President Moon quickly tried to get a handle on it by proposing a new summit. President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, however, offered completely different versions of events, not just from Kim’s comments, but from one another.

Pompeo was very dismissive of Kim wanting US flexibility, insisting that Kim had already agreed to denuclearization, and that the only thing the US wants to see is him keeping his promise before the US considers any concessions.

Which was very different from Trump’s own comments. The president insisted everything is “moving along just perfectly,” with the sanctions and everything, and he gets along so well with Kim that he has every confidence in the process.