President Trump said Thursday he could agree to formally end the Korean War during his summit with Kim Jong Un next week, describing a peace agreement as “the easy part” of nuclear negotiations with the North Korean leader.
“We could sign an an agreement, as you know it could be a first step,” Trump said during a Rose Garden press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “It’s what happens after the agreement that will be the big point.”
He continued, “We could absolutely sign an agreement. It sounds a little bit strange, but that’s the easy part. The hard part starts after that.”
A peace agreement could mark an important step toward normalized relations between the U.S. and North Korea, though the president reiterated that he is “totally prepared to walk” away from his summit with Kim if the authoritarian leader declines to commit to denuclearizing the Korean peninsula. Trump also said he has “300 new sanctions” ready to be imposed against Pyongyang if the June 12 summit in Singapore does not go smoothly.
“All I can say is I am totally prepared to walk away. I did it once before,” Trump said.
But the president simultaneously declared that he would be willing to invite Kim back to the U.S. for a second meeting if their initial meeting produces desirable results.
[Also read: White House names venue for Trump’s Singapore summit with Kim Jong Un]
“Maybe we’ll start with the White House, what do you think?” he told reporters Thursday.
