President Trump on Wednesday said he will announce the date and location of his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “within three days,” telling reporters the historic meeting will not take place at the Demilitarized Zone as he had previously suggested.
“I think we have a really great chance to make a great deal for the world,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
Trump teased the highly anticipated announcement just hours after revealing Wednesday morning that his administration secured the release of three Americans who had been held captive by the Kim regime. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to return to Washington around 2 a.m. Thursday with the three former captives, who will be greeted by the president on the tarmac.
Trump declined to weigh in on recent suggestions by some Republican lawmakers that he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for his breakthrough with Pyongyang.
“Everyone thinks so, but I would never say it,” the president said, smiling.
Though Trump previously said he wanted the face-to-face meeting with Kim to occur in the zone between the two Koreas, he said Wednesday that location had been ruled out.
Senior White House officials have floated Singapore as a potential host location for the summit.
