[SUMMIT] Historic summit begins with handshake and exchange of body language

By Lim Chang-won Posted : June 12, 2018, 11:14 Updated : June 12, 2018, 11:14

[EPA / Yonhap]


SINGAPORE -- U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un kicked off their historic meeting in Singapore with a warm exchange of greetings and hopeful remarks on ending decades of hostilities between the two Cold War enemies.    

The summit began actually when Trump and Kim shook hands and posed together for photographers against the backdrop of U.S. and North Korean flags at the entrance to the Capella Hotel on the resort island of Sentosa. Trump put his hand on Kim's upper arm at the start of their handshake.

Clad in a May-style suit, Kim put on a stern face while Trump wearing a red tie showed a confident attitude, putting his arm on Kim's back to guide them into the conference hall. They spoke briefly in a corridor before entering the meeting room. Trump was seen patting Kim on the back at several points.

Sitting in chairs in the meeting room, Trump opened his mouth first, saying he was confident the summit would be a "tremendous success". "I feel really great. We are going to have a great discussion. It's my honor and we will have a terrific relationship, I have no doubt," the U.S. leader said, offering a thumb's up after Kim said the two leaders got together in Singapore after overcoming "old prejudices and practices."

"Sometimes it blocks our eyes and ears. But we ended up arriving to this location and the old prejudices and practices work as obstacles in our way forward, but we overcame all of them and we are here today," Kim said through an official translator.

The two leaders wearing big smiles seemed confident and hopeful of their historic opportunity to seek a peaceful settlement of North Korea's nuclear and missile threats that have posed a great threat to peace in Northeast Asia.

It marked the first-ever face-to-face meeting between the leaders of Cold War enemies and Trump has vowed to determine through his meeting with Kim whether "a real deal" could happen. "Meetings between staffs and representatives are going well and quickly ... but in the end, that doesn't matter. We will all know soon whether or not a real deal, unlike those of the past, can happen!" Trump tweeted earlier.

Before coming to Singapore, Kim has taken a series of conciliatory steps. He released three American citizens held in the North, suspended nuclear and missile tests and closed the North's nuclear test site. However, many pundits cast doubts about North Korea's true intentions.

"The fact that I am having a meeting is a major loss for the U.S., say the haters & losers," Trump wrote. "We have our hostages, testing, research and all missle (sic) launches have stoped (sic), and these pundits, who have called me wrong from the beginning, have nothing else they can say! We will be fine!"

Citing "verification" as the missing element in previous agreements, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters Monday that Washington would make sure to verify any dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

"The 'V' matters," he said, referring to complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID). "We're going to ensure that we set up a system sufficiently robust that we're able to verify these outcomes, and it's only once the 'V' happens that we will proceed apace."

CVID is the U.S. goal and sanctions on North Korea will remain until that goal is achieved, Pompeo said, adding the two sides could come to "a logical conclusion even more quickly than we anticipated." Washington is prepared to provide security assurances that are "different" and "unique", but a lot of work still remains, the secretary said.

This story was contributed by Park Sae-jin, reporter, and Jazin Wee, an editorial assistant.
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