Singapore; June 12, 2018
Finally, Top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump met at the Capella Hotel in Singapore's resort island of Sentosa.
Kim and Trump started their first summit with a historic handshake that lasted for several seconds.
After shaking hands again with Kim in front of the cameras, Trump gave a thumbs-up before starting the first meeting between an incumbent U.S. president and a DPRK leader.
Their first session, that lasted 40 minutes, was one on one, followed by a larger session, which was attended by major security and diplomatic aides to Kim and Trump on a working lunch.
According to Xinhua, a major Chinese news portal, “on the DPRK side, Kim Yong Chol and Ri Su Yong, two vice chairmen of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) Central Committee, and Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho were present.
Accompanying Trump were White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, National Security Advisor John Bolton, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.”
"Working together, we will get it taken care of," Trump said at the beginning of the expanded discussions, forecasting that he and Kim will solve "a big problem and a big dilemma."
Kim said he will "cooperate with President Trump to resolve the challenges ahead" and to overcome the skepticism and speculations about their summit.
More officials took part in the working lunch, with the additional participants on the U.S. side, including White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, National Security Council Senior Director for Asia Matt Pottinger, and senior diplomat Sung Kim, who has led substantive talks with Pyongyang into the summit.
"This is just a new beginning," Trump said while shaking hands with Kim.
Kim, dressed in a dark suit, and Trump, sporting a red tie, talked in a corner of the hotel corridor for a few minutes before they walked along the passage into the meeting room and sat down in front of journalists.
"The way coming here was not easy," Kim said.
"We had the past that grabbed our ankles and old prejudices and practices that covered our eyes and ears. We are here after overcoming all these," he said.
Predicting a tremendous success of the summit, Trump said it was "an honor" to meet with Kim face-to-face and that he would have "a terrific relationship" with the DPRK leader.
