North Koreans got their first big dose of news today that their leader Kim Jong Un had arrived in Singapore for what even the state-run media was calling a historic meeting with US President Donald Trump.

The news covered the front page of the ruling party's newspaper and was the top - and only - item on the first news broadcast of the day on Korean Central Television, which for many North Koreans is the only channel available.

People crowded around poster stands at subway stations around the capital to read the news and gathered at noon in front of the city's main train station to watch a big screen display of images of Kim getting off the special Air China flight that took him to Singapore.

A report by the Korea Central News Agency said the summit would have "wide-ranging and profound talks" and noted that it is being held "under the great attention and expectation of the whole world."

The relative speed with which the state media got the news of Kim's arrival in Singapore out to the North Korean public suggests a certain level of confidence that the meeting will go well - or at least well enough.

For the North, Kim Jong Un has already won a huge propaganda bonus by merely having the summit and sitting down as an equal with the US president, an accomplishment his father and grandfather sought but could never realise.

By prominently showing the Air China jet that flew Kim to Singapore, the reports also made no secret of China's important role behind the scenes. That might not bode so well for Trump, who has expressed some concern about China's influence.

Even so, the summit continues to be a highly sensitive topic in North Korea and it is difficult - even more so than usual - to get people to express their opinions about it. The media reports Monday follow months of only the scantest of coverage of the plans for Kim to meet Trump, though his summits with South Korea's President Moon Jae-in and China's President Xi Jinping received major coverage soon after they had ended.

"When I woke up this morning I saw the news in the newspaper that our respected Marshal went to Singapore for the North Korea-U.S. Summit," said Han Il Gwang, a Pyongyang resident, displaying typical discretion when speaking to an Associated Press Television crew.

"I know that Singapore is a very hot country so I wish that our respected Marshal stays healthy and comes back in good health." Such characteristic caution when speaking in public notwithstanding, there is no doubt the prospect of the summit is generating a good deal of interest, and probably astonishment, among average North Koreans.

North Korea has so far presented Kim's sudden diplomatic overtures to his neighbors and to the United States as a logical next step following what Kim has claimed is the completion of his plan to develop a credible nuclear deterrent to what

Pyongyang has long claimed is a policy of hostility and "nuclear blackmail" by Washington.

Those points were echoed in Monday's media coverage, which stressed that the talks with Trump would be focused on forging a relationship that is more in tune with what it called changing times - most likely meaning the North's new status as a nuclear weapons state - its desire for a mechanism to ensure a lasting a durable peace on the Korean Peninsula and, finally, denuclearisation.

The news covered the front page of the ruling party's newspaper and was the top - and only - item on the first news broadcast of the day on Korean Central Television, which for many North Koreans is the only channel available

North Koreans got their first big dose of news today that their leader Kim Jong Un had arrived in Singapore for what even the state-run media was calling a historic meeting with US President Donald Trump. The news covered the front page of the ruling party's newspaper and was the top - and only - item on the first news broadcast of the day on Korean Central Television, which for many North Koreans is the only channel available. People crowded around poster stands at subway stations around the capital to read the news and gathered at noon in front of the city's main train station to watch a big screen display of images of Kim getting off the special Air China flight that took him to Singapore. A report by the Korea Central News Agency said the summit would have "wide-ranging and profound talks" and noted that it is being held "under the great attention and expectation of the whole world." The relative speed with which the state media got the news of Kim's arrival in Singapore out to the North Korean public suggests a certain level of confidence that the meeting will go well - or at least well enough. For the North, Kim Jong Un has already won a huge propaganda bonus by merely having the summit and sitting down as an equal with the US president, an accomplishment his father and grandfather sought but could never realise. By prominently showing the Air China jet that flew Kim to Singapore, the reports also made no secret of China's important role behind the scenes. That might not bode so well for Trump, who has expressed some concern about China's influence. Even so, the summit continues to be a highly sensitive topic in North Korea and it is difficult - even more so than usual - to get people to express their opinions about it. The media reports Monday follow months of only the scantest of coverage of the plans for Kim to meet Trump, though his summits with South Korea's President Moon Jae-in and China's President Xi Jinping received major coverage soon after they had ended. "When I woke up this morning I saw the news in the newspaper that our respected Marshal went to Singapore for the North Korea-U.S. Summit," said Han Il Gwang, a Pyongyang resident, displaying typical discretion when speaking to an Associated Press Television crew. "I know that Singapore is a very hot country so I wish that our respected Marshal stays healthy and comes back in good health." Such characteristic caution when speaking in public notwithstanding, there is no doubt the prospect of the summit is generating a good deal of interest, and probably astonishment, among average North Koreans. North Korea has so far presented Kim's sudden diplomatic overtures to his neighbors and to the United States as a logical next step following what Kim has claimed is the completion of his plan to develop a credible nuclear deterrent to what Pyongyang has long claimed is a policy of hostility and "nuclear blackmail" by Washington. Those points were echoed in Monday's media coverage, which stressed that the talks with Trump would be focused on forging a relationship that is more in tune with what it called changing times - most likely meaning the North's new status as a nuclear weapons state - its desire for a mechanism to ensure a lasting a durable peace on the Korean Peninsula and, finally, denuclearisation.

North Korea gets first big dose of Trump summit news

The president of the United States said Monday there was excitement in the air in Singapore ahead of the historic summit on Tuesday when he will meet with the North Korean leader.

"Great to be in Singapore, excitement in the air!" Donald Trump wrote on his Twitter account.

The US president arrived in Singapore on Sunday night and on Monday morning he was scheduled to meet with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at The Istana, the presidential office and residence.

Trump was also due to have a working lunch with Lee and representatives of both governments before meeting in the afternoon with staff of the US embassy in Singapore.

The agenda of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who arrived in Singapore on Sunday afternoon and also met with Lee, remains unknown.

Meanwhile, the delegations from the US and North Korea began a meeting on Monday at the Ritz-Carlton hotel at 10 am local time to finalize the agenda of the summit. Sung Kim - a Washington delegate who has led talks on Pyongyang's nuclear program over the past decade - was heading the US team, according to the White House.

The summit between Trump and Kim is scheduled to start at 9 am on Tuesday at the Capella Singapore. It will mark the first encounter between North Korean and US leaders after nearly 70 years of confrontation and 25 years of failed negotiations as well as tensions as a result of Pyongyang's nuclear programs.

Despite the summit looming, it appeared Trump could not free his mind from the trade row he had with his allies during the G7 summit in La Malbaie, Canada, on Saturday.

"Why should I, as President of the United States, allow countries to continue to make Massive Trade Surpluses, as they have for decades. Not fair to the PEOPLE of America!" Trump wrote in a series of tweets on the subject on Monday.

After the weekend's G7 summit, the US president rejected a joint communique over Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaking out against Washington's new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Trudeau has wowed "retaliatory tariffs."

The US president arrived in Singapore on Sunday night and on Monday morning he was scheduled to meet with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at The Istana, the presidential office and residence

The president of the United States said Monday there was excitement in the air in Singapore ahead of the historic summit on Tuesday when he will meet with the North Korean leader. "Great to be in Singapore, excitement in the air!" Donald Trump wrote on his Twitter account. The US president arrived in Singapore on Sunday night and on Monday morning he was scheduled to meet with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at The Istana, the presidential office and residence. Trump was also due to have a working lunch with Lee and representatives of both governments before meeting in the afternoon with staff of the US embassy in Singapore. The agenda of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who arrived in Singapore on Sunday afternoon and also met with Lee, remains unknown. Meanwhile, the delegations from the US and North Korea began a meeting on Monday at the Ritz-Carlton hotel at 10 am local time to finalize the agenda of the summit. Sung Kim - a Washington delegate who has led talks on Pyongyang's nuclear program over the past decade - was heading the US team, according to the White House. The summit between Trump and Kim is scheduled to start at 9 am on Tuesday at the Capella Singapore. It will mark the first encounter between North Korean and US leaders after nearly 70 years of confrontation and 25 years of failed negotiations as well as tensions as a result of Pyongyang's nuclear programs. Despite the summit looming, it appeared Trump could not free his mind from the trade row he had with his allies during the G7 summit in La Malbaie, Canada, on Saturday. "Why should I, as President of the United States, allow countries to continue to make Massive Trade Surpluses, as they have for decades. Not fair to the PEOPLE of America!" Trump wrote in a series of tweets on the subject on Monday. After the weekend's G7 summit, the US president rejected a joint communique over Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaking out against Washington's new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Trudeau has wowed "retaliatory tariffs."

Excitement in the air, Trump says ahead of Singapore summit

Germany and France on Sunday sharply criticised U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to abruptly withdraw his support for a Group of Seven communique, accusing him of destroying trust and acting inconsistently.

Trump's announcement on Twitter, after he left the G7 summit in Canada early, that he was backing out of the joint communique torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on a trade dispute between Washington and its top allies.

Trump also took aim at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and said he might double down on import tariffs by hitting the sensitive automobile industry, throwing G7 efforts to show a united front into disarray.

G7 members Germany and France said they stood by the communique despite Trump's decision.

"In a matter of seconds, you can destroy trust with 280 Twitter characters," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said when asked about Trump's U-turn, adding it would take much longer to rebuild lost trust.

Trump's conduct was "actually not a real surprise, we have seen this with the climate agreement or the Iran deal", Maas, a senior member of the Social Democrats (SPD), a partner in Chancellor Angela Merkel's governing coalition, told reporters.

Trump withdrew the United States from the global deal reached in Paris in December 2015 to curb global warming, and last month from world powers' July 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, asserting that it was one-sided in Tehran's favour.

SPD leader Andrea Nahles accused Trump of turning the G7 summit into a disaster with his tweets and bowing out of his international responsibilities. "President Trump is creating chaos. Reasonable and reliable policy is not possible that way."

France and Europe are standing by the G7 communique, a French presidency official said, adding anyone departing from the commitments made at the summit would be showing their "incoherence and inconsistency".

"International cooperation cannot depend on being angry and on sound bites. Let's be serious," the French official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

Trump has infuriated the European Union, Canada and Mexico by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, accusing all of having shortchanged the United States in trade deals. They strongly deny this.

Trump and European allies are also at odds over Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the deal in which Iran curbed its disputed nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief, and the Paris climate change accord.

"We have to keep a cool head now and draw the right conclusions," Maas said. Europe's answer must be to stick even closer together, defend its interests and strengthen alliances with countries such as Japan and Canada, he said.

"Europe united is the answer to America First," Maas added.

A German government spokesman also said that Berlin stands by the jointly agreed G7 communique in which leaders underlined the crucial role of a rules-based international trading system and promised to fight protectionism.

In Washington, the top White House economic adviser accused Canada's prime minister on Sunday of betraying Trump with "polarising" statements on U.S. trade policy that risked undermining the American leader on the eve of a historic summit with North Korea.

Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, lashed out at Trudeau as "amateurish" and "sophomoric" for a news conference the prime minister gave after Trump left the G7 summit on Saturday.

Trudeau told reporters that he had spoken of retaliatory measures that Canada would take next month in response to Trump's decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

Trump's announcement on Twitter, after he left the G7 summit in Canada early, that he was backing out of the joint communique torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on a trade dispute between Washington and its top allies

Germany and France on Sunday sharply criticised U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to abruptly withdraw his support for a Group of Seven communique, accusing him of destroying trust and acting inconsistently. Trump's announcement on Twitter, after he left the G7 summit in Canada early, that he was backing out of the joint communique torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on a trade dispute between Washington and its top allies. Trump also took aim at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and said he might double down on import tariffs by hitting the sensitive automobile industry, throwing G7 efforts to show a united front into disarray. G7 members Germany and France said they stood by the communique despite Trump's decision. "In a matter of seconds, you can destroy trust with 280 Twitter characters," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said when asked about Trump's U-turn, adding it would take much longer to rebuild lost trust. Trump's conduct was "actually not a real surprise, we have seen this with the climate agreement or the Iran deal", Maas, a senior member of the Social Democrats (SPD), a partner in Chancellor Angela Merkel's governing coalition, told reporters. Trump withdrew the United States from the global deal reached in Paris in December 2015 to curb global warming, and last month from world powers' July 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, asserting that it was one-sided in Tehran's favour. SPD leader Andrea Nahles accused Trump of turning the G7 summit into a disaster with his tweets and bowing out of his international responsibilities. "President Trump is creating chaos. Reasonable and reliable policy is not possible that way." France and Europe are standing by the G7 communique, a French presidency official said, adding anyone departing from the commitments made at the summit would be showing their "incoherence and inconsistency". "International cooperation cannot depend on being angry and on sound bites. Let's be serious," the French official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters. Trump has infuriated the European Union, Canada and Mexico by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, accusing all of having shortchanged the United States in trade deals. They strongly deny this. Trump and European allies are also at odds over Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the deal in which Iran curbed its disputed nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief, and the Paris climate change accord. "We have to keep a cool head now and draw the right conclusions," Maas said. Europe's answer must be to stick even closer together, defend its interests and strengthen alliances with countries such as Japan and Canada, he said. "Europe united is the answer to America First," Maas added. A German government spokesman also said that Berlin stands by the jointly agreed G7 communique in which leaders underlined the crucial role of a rules-based international trading system and promised to fight protectionism. In Washington, the top White House economic adviser accused Canada's prime minister on Sunday of betraying Trump with "polarising" statements on U.S. trade policy that risked undermining the American leader on the eve of a historic summit with North Korea. Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, lashed out at Trudeau as "amateurish" and "sophomoric" for a news conference the prime minister gave after Trump left the G7 summit on Saturday. Trudeau told reporters that he had spoken of retaliatory measures that Canada would take next month in response to Trump's decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

Germany, France blast Trump over Group of Seven U-turn

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will sit down on Tuesday, June 12, for an unprecedented summit that has raised hopes of progress on the troubled Korean peninsula.

From Kim's nuclear arsenal to normalising ties between the two-decades-old foes, these are the issues facing the two leaders at what Trump has called a "one-time shot" at peace.

Denuclearisation

This is the absolute crux of the summit and there remains a chasm between the two sides that diplomats were scrambling to close on the eve of the meeting.

Washington is demanding the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID) of North Korea. In Trump's words: "They have to de-nuke. If they don't denuclearise, that will not be acceptable."

North Korea has repeatedly expressed a commitment to the "denuclearization of the Korean peninsula" – notably in a report by state agency KCNA on the eve of the summit – but the term is open to interpretation on both sides and it remains unclear what concessions Kim is prepared to offer.

South Korea estimates the North has 50 kilograms of plutonium, reportedly enough for around 10 bombs, and a "considerable" ability to produce uranium weapons.

Previous agreements with the North have subsequently collapsed and experts warn Kim is highly unlikely to give up the "treasured sword" of his nuclear deterrent.

Dismantling a secret nuclear arsenal built up over decades would take several years and be extremely difficult to check, they say.

Siegfried Hecker, a noted US nuclear expert, said the immediate CVID of the North was "unimaginable" and "tantamount to a North Korean surrender scenario".

End to Korean war?

North and South Korea remain technically at war after the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice that Seoul's then leader refused to sign and divided the peninsula along the Demilitarized Zone.

At their summit in April Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to seek a peace treaty and Trump mused earlier this month: "Can you believe we're talking about the ending of the Korean War?"

Seoul announced last week it was in 3-way talks with Pyongyang and Washington for an "early" declaration that the war is over.

That could precede a full treaty which would raise complex issues needing extensive negotiation and would need to involve China, which backed the North during the conflict and is a signatory to the armistice.

But Trump said: "We could absolutely sign an agreement and we're looking at it," adding: "Sounds a little bit strange, but that's probably the easy part."

Normalization

Ahead of the meeting, Trump has dangled the carrot of a normalisation of diplomatic ties between the former foes and even a White House visit for Kim, which would confirm his arrival on the world stage.

"Maybe we'll start with the White House, what do you think?" he said when asked if Kim would be invited to Washington or his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

The other carrot for Kim is a possible loosening of punishing UN Security Council sanctions but here too there is discord, with Washington saying sanctions can end only when denuclearisation is complete and Pyongyang wanting "phased" relief as they make progress towards that goal.

Human rights?

Another question is whether Trump will take up the issue of human rights – with North Korea accused of a host of state-sanctioned rights abuse including extrajudicial killing, torture and kidnapping.

North Korea is estimated to have up to 120,000 political prisoners in its sprawling gulag system.

Close US ally Japan has urged Trump to bring up the decades-old issue of its citizens abducted in 1970s and 1980s to train Pyongyang's spies in Japanese language and customs.

Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said it was imperative that Trump bring up rights issues with Kim.

"North Korea's increased dialogue with other countries is a positive step, but before the world gets too excited they should remember that Kim Jong Un still presides over perhaps the most repressive system in the world," he said.

Security

Kim's main concern is the survival of his own regime – South Korean President Moon Jae-in told reporters that the Pyongyang leader had "concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearizes itself".

So the summit was nearly derailed by talk from Trump's hawkish National Security Advisor John Bolton of a "Libya model" of disarmament.

Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi was deposed and killed in a Western-backed rebellion after abandoning his nuclear programme.

The Trump administration has promised not to seek to bring about regime change and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has even floated the possibility of issuing security guarantees to the North.

But some question why Kim should trust any guarantees given Trump's history of pulling out of accords -- most recently the painstakingly negotiated Iran nuclear deal.

"Why would Kim... believe any commitments President Trump makes when he arbitrarily tears up an agreement with which the other party is complying?" said Antony Blinken, who was deputy secretary of state under Barack Obama.

From Kim's nuclear arsenal to normalising ties between the two-decades-old foes, these are the issues facing the two leaders at what Trump has called a "one-time shot" at peace

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will sit down on Tuesday, June 12, for an unprecedented summit that has raised hopes of progress on the troubled Korean peninsula. From Kim's nuclear arsenal to normalising ties between the two-decades-old foes, these are the issues facing the two leaders at what Trump has called a "one-time shot" at peace. Denuclearisation This is the absolute crux of the summit and there remains a chasm between the two sides that diplomats were scrambling to close on the eve of the meeting. Washington is demanding the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID) of North Korea. In Trump's words: "They have to de-nuke. If they don't denuclearise, that will not be acceptable." North Korea has repeatedly expressed a commitment to the "denuclearization of the Korean peninsula" – notably in a report by state agency KCNA on the eve of the summit – but the term is open to interpretation on both sides and it remains unclear what concessions Kim is prepared to offer. South Korea estimates the North has 50 kilograms of plutonium, reportedly enough for around 10 bombs, and a "considerable" ability to produce uranium weapons. Previous agreements with the North have subsequently collapsed and experts warn Kim is highly unlikely to give up the "treasured sword" of his nuclear deterrent. Dismantling a secret nuclear arsenal built up over decades would take several years and be extremely difficult to check, they say. Siegfried Hecker, a noted US nuclear expert, said the immediate CVID of the North was "unimaginable" and "tantamount to a North Korean surrender scenario". End to Korean war? North and South Korea remain technically at war after the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice that Seoul's then leader refused to sign and divided the peninsula along the Demilitarized Zone. At their summit in April Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to seek a peace treaty and Trump mused earlier this month: "Can you believe we're talking about the ending of the Korean War?" Seoul announced last week it was in 3-way talks with Pyongyang and Washington for an "early" declaration that the war is over. That could precede a full treaty which would raise complex issues needing extensive negotiation and would need to involve China, which backed the North during the conflict and is a signatory to the armistice. But Trump said: "We could absolutely sign an agreement and we're looking at it," adding: "Sounds a little bit strange, but that's probably the easy part." Normalization Ahead of the meeting, Trump has dangled the carrot of a normalisation of diplomatic ties between the former foes and even a White House visit for Kim, which would confirm his arrival on the world stage. "Maybe we'll start with the White House, what do you think?" he said when asked if Kim would be invited to Washington or his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. The other carrot for Kim is a possible loosening of punishing UN Security Council sanctions but here too there is discord, with Washington saying sanctions can end only when denuclearisation is complete and Pyongyang wanting "phased" relief as they make progress towards that goal. Human rights? Another question is whether Trump will take up the issue of human rights – with North Korea accused of a host of state-sanctioned rights abuse including extrajudicial killing, torture and kidnapping. North Korea is estimated to have up to 120,000 political prisoners in its sprawling gulag system. Close US ally Japan has urged Trump to bring up the decades-old issue of its citizens abducted in 1970s and 1980s to train Pyongyang's spies in Japanese language and customs. Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said it was imperative that Trump bring up rights issues with Kim. "North Korea's increased dialogue with other countries is a positive step, but before the world gets too excited they should remember that Kim Jong Un still presides over perhaps the most repressive system in the world," he said. Security Kim's main concern is the survival of his own regime – South Korean President Moon Jae-in told reporters that the Pyongyang leader had "concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearizes itself". So the summit was nearly derailed by talk from Trump's hawkish National Security Advisor John Bolton of a "Libya model" of disarmament. Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi was deposed and killed in a Western-backed rebellion after abandoning his nuclear programme. The Trump administration has promised not to seek to bring about regime change and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has even floated the possibility of issuing security guarantees to the North. But some question why Kim should trust any guarantees given Trump's history of pulling out of accords -- most recently the painstakingly negotiated Iran nuclear deal. "Why would Kim... believe any commitments President Trump makes when he arbitrarily tears up an agreement with which the other party is complying?" said Antony Blinken, who was deputy secretary of state under Barack Obama.

Nukes and normalisation: What's on the table in Singapore

U.S. President Donald Trump may have promised that North Korea will become "very rich" on the back of American investment if Pyongyang ditches nuclear weapons but economists and academics who have studied the isolated country say it is China not the U.S. that will be the engine of any transformation.

The nearest template would not be based on American-style capitalism, but China's state-controlled market economy first championed by Deng Xiaoping, who became China's leader in 1978, these experts said. China was just coming out of the turmoil of the 27-year reign of Mao Zedong, a period during which capitalism was banned and private businesses and property were seized by the state and placed under collective ownership.

Deng introduced wrenching reforms that are widely regarded as creating the foundations of China's economic miracle in the past 40 years. The changes were massive, the growth phenomenal, but most importantly the Chinese Communist Party has achieved all of this while not only retaining power but increasing its control over the country.

And in the run up to the unprecedented summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday in Singapore, it has been China that Pyongyang has been increasingly turning to.

Kim has made two visits to meet Xi since March, while a high-level delegation from his ruling Workers' Party toured China's industrial hubs in an 11-day visit in May that focused on China's high-tech urban transport and latest scientific breakthroughs.

That delegation went to China only weeks after Kim declared an end to nuclear and missile tests and vowed an all-out effort toward "socialist economic construction."

Chinese media labelled Kim's announcement North Korea's "opening and reform", shorthand for Deng's policies, sparking a flurry of investment in housing in Dandong, the Chinese border town.

"Kim is talking to Trump because he needs to get the United States to back off sanctions. After that, headlines will be all about Kim and Xi Jinping," said Jeon Kyong-man, an economist at the Institute for Korean Integration of Society, with reference to the Chinese president.

China is already North Korea's most important ally and biggest trade partner. And since Kim assumed power in 2011 the trade relationship has become even more important. China now represents more than 90 percent of Pyongyang's trade, making it just about North Korea's only economic lifeline.

Stagnating economic growth in China's northeastern rustbelt has also spurred interest in ramping up Chinese economic ties with North Korea, according to Adam Cathcart, an expert on China-North Korea relations at Leeds University in the United Kingdom.

China's model of shifting from a planned economy to a market economy is attractive for Pyongyang because it was achieved with political, economic and social stability, according to Zhang Anyuan, chief economist at Dongxing Securities in Beijing.

"Taking into consideration geographic location, economic system, market size, economic development stage, China-North Korean economic cooperation has advantages that are irreplaceable and hard to replicate," Zhang said.

But Cathcart said that progress on economic liberalisation would likely be slow because North Korea will want to be careful about the increased political risks that could come from relaxing restrictions on the currency and migration.

As well as China, North Korea may also look to other economies where tight top-down control has been kept, including Vietnam or even the 'chaebol' business structures of South Korea, which could allow something closer to "a capital dictatorship," according to Cathcart.

Xi, under intense pressure from Trump, started enforcing sanctions strictly in the second half of 2017. By March this year, China imported no iron ore, coal or lead from North Korea for a sixth month in a row, in line with U.N. Security Council sanctions.

That has hurt North Korea's coal-intensive heavy industries and manufacturing sectors. But more importantly, plunging trade with Beijing has been "killing the most thriving part of the economy" - unofficial markets where individuals and wholesalers buy and sell mostly Chinese-made consumer goods and agricultural products, Jeon said.

"More than anything, it was China's decision to enforce sanctions that squeezed the economy and made removing of the sanctions an urgent task for Kim," he said.

Even after sanctions are lifted, North Korea will likely pursue state-managed growth because loosening controls is potentially destabilising for the regime, says Kim Byung-yeon, an economics professor at Seoul National University. "It could leave Kim Jong Un with less than half the power he has now."

As part of efforts to maintain control, any opening could initially be limited to "special economic zones," where Pyongyang has sought to combine its cheap labour with China's financial firepower and technological know-how, according to BMI Research, a unit of Fitch Group.

The Wonsan Special Tourist Zone in the east coast, or the suspended inter-Korean factory park in the North's border city of Kaesong are some other examples Kim might pursue to maintain state controls over the economy, experts say.

In Wonsan, Kim has already built a ski resort and a new airport to turn the city of 360,000 people into a billion-dollar tourist hotspot.

"These are the sorts of projects that are most likely to get underway first if the sanctions are eased," BMI Research said.

Jeon says this is "mosquito-net style" reform - similar to Deng Xiaoping's model - with limited foreign investment and market liberalisation contained within firm strictures of state control.

Deng championed a string of special economic zones along China's east coast where unique local legislation encouraged foreign investment in manufacturing joint-ventures that sold to export markets, while protecting Chinese industries from going head-to-head with multinationals.

"Deng designated Shenzhen as a special economic zone and made that sleepy fishing village to a manufacturing hub of the world," Jeon said. "Kim will be eager for those, especially as he will want minimal changes to other parts of the economy."

Kim has made two visits to meet Xi since March, while a high-level delegation from his ruling Workers' Party toured China's industrial hubs in an 11-day visit in May that focused on China's high-tech urban transport and latest scientific breakthroughs

U.S. President Donald Trump may have promised that North Korea will become "very rich" on the back of American investment if Pyongyang ditches nuclear weapons but economists and academics who have studied the isolated country say it is China not the U.S. that will be the engine of any transformation. The nearest template would not be based on American-style capitalism, but China's state-controlled market economy first championed by Deng Xiaoping, who became China's leader in 1978, these experts said. China was just coming out of the turmoil of the 27-year reign of Mao Zedong, a period during which capitalism was banned and private businesses and property were seized by the state and placed under collective ownership. Deng introduced wrenching reforms that are widely regarded as creating the foundations of China's economic miracle in the past 40 years. The changes were massive, the growth phenomenal, but most importantly the Chinese Communist Party has achieved all of this while not only retaining power but increasing its control over the country. And in the run up to the unprecedented summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday in Singapore, it has been China that Pyongyang has been increasingly turning to. Kim has made two visits to meet Xi since March, while a high-level delegation from his ruling Workers' Party toured China's industrial hubs in an 11-day visit in May that focused on China's high-tech urban transport and latest scientific breakthroughs. That delegation went to China only weeks after Kim declared an end to nuclear and missile tests and vowed an all-out effort toward "socialist economic construction." Chinese media labelled Kim's announcement North Korea's "opening and reform", shorthand for Deng's policies, sparking a flurry of investment in housing in Dandong, the Chinese border town. "Kim is talking to Trump because he needs to get the United States to back off sanctions. After that, headlines will be all about Kim and Xi Jinping," said Jeon Kyong-man, an economist at the Institute for Korean Integration of Society, with reference to the Chinese president. China is already North Korea's most important ally and biggest trade partner. And since Kim assumed power in 2011 the trade relationship has become even more important. China now represents more than 90 percent of Pyongyang's trade, making it just about North Korea's only economic lifeline. Stagnating economic growth in China's northeastern rustbelt has also spurred interest in ramping up Chinese economic ties with North Korea, according to Adam Cathcart, an expert on China-North Korea relations at Leeds University in the United Kingdom. China's model of shifting from a planned economy to a market economy is attractive for Pyongyang because it was achieved with political, economic and social stability, according to Zhang Anyuan, chief economist at Dongxing Securities in Beijing. "Taking into consideration geographic location, economic system, market size, economic development stage, China-North Korean economic cooperation has advantages that are irreplaceable and hard to replicate," Zhang said. But Cathcart said that progress on economic liberalisation would likely be slow because North Korea will want to be careful about the increased political risks that could come from relaxing restrictions on the currency and migration. As well as China, North Korea may also look to other economies where tight top-down control has been kept, including Vietnam or even the 'chaebol' business structures of South Korea, which could allow something closer to "a capital dictatorship," according to Cathcart. Xi, under intense pressure from Trump, started enforcing sanctions strictly in the second half of 2017. By March this year, China imported no iron ore, coal or lead from North Korea for a sixth month in a row, in line with U.N. Security Council sanctions. That has hurt North Korea's coal-intensive heavy industries and manufacturing sectors. But more importantly, plunging trade with Beijing has been "killing the most thriving part of the economy" - unofficial markets where individuals and wholesalers buy and sell mostly Chinese-made consumer goods and agricultural products, Jeon said. "More than anything, it was China's decision to enforce sanctions that squeezed the economy and made removing of the sanctions an urgent task for Kim," he said. Even after sanctions are lifted, North Korea will likely pursue state-managed growth because loosening controls is potentially destabilising for the regime, says Kim Byung-yeon, an economics professor at Seoul National University. "It could leave Kim Jong Un with less than half the power he has now." As part of efforts to maintain control, any opening could initially be limited to "special economic zones," where Pyongyang has sought to combine its cheap labour with China's financial firepower and technological know-how, according to BMI Research, a unit of Fitch Group. The Wonsan Special Tourist Zone in the east coast, or the suspended inter-Korean factory park in the North's border city of Kaesong are some other examples Kim might pursue to maintain state controls over the economy, experts say. In Wonsan, Kim has already built a ski resort and a new airport to turn the city of 360,000 people into a billion-dollar tourist hotspot. "These are the sorts of projects that are most likely to get underway first if the sanctions are eased," BMI Research said. Jeon says this is "mosquito-net style" reform - similar to Deng Xiaoping's model - with limited foreign investment and market liberalisation contained within firm strictures of state control. Deng championed a string of special economic zones along China's east coast where unique local legislation encouraged foreign investment in manufacturing joint-ventures that sold to export markets, while protecting Chinese industries from going head-to-head with multinationals. "Deng designated Shenzhen as a special economic zone and made that sleepy fishing village to a manufacturing hub of the world," Jeon said. "Kim will be eager for those, especially as he will want minimal changes to other parts of the economy."

North Korea seen looking to China, not US, for help in any economic transformation

Embarking on a self-described "mission of peace," President&nbspDonald Trump's seat-of-the-pants foreign policy is facing its toughest test yet as he attempts this week to personally broker an end to North Korea's nuclear program with&nbspKim Jong Un. 
 
The impulsive American president, who just days earlier called into doubt a pillar of the Western alliance, is set to face his match on the global stage as he prepares to meet Kim in Singapore. In the historic first meeting between the leaders of the technically-still-warring nations, Trump is prioritizing instinct over planning. Unlike traditional summits between heads of state, where most of the work is completed in advance of a photo-op, US officials say the only thing certain ahead of these talks will be their unpredictability. 
 
Ever since Trump shocked allies, White House officials, and, by some accounts, the North Koreans themselves when he accepted Kim's March invitation for a meeting, the two leaders have lurched toward an uncertain encounter that may well determine the fate of millions. 
 
"It's unknown territory in the truest sense, but I really feel confident," Trump told reporters Saturday. "I feel that Kim Jong Un wants to do something great for his people and he has that opportunity and he won't have that opportunity again." 
 
Trump's engagement with Kim fulfills the North Korean ruling family's long-unrequited yearning for international legitimacy, itself a substantial concession that could weaken more than a generation of US efforts to isolate the country on the global stage. 
 
"It's never been done before," Trump said Saturday. "And obviously, what has been done before hasn't worked." 
 
A triumvirate of forces is bringing the meeting to fruition, said Scott Snyder, Senior Fellow for Korea Studies and Director of the Program on US-Korea Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, describing the summit as "Produced by Kim, directed by (South Korean President&nbspMoon Jae-in), and inspired by Trump." 
 
The hard-hitting sanctions and desire for legitimacy brought the youthful Kim to the table. The South Korean leader's efforts to avert a potentially catastrophic US first strike pushed both leaders to take a risk. And Trump is the first US president willing to sit-down with the autocratic ruler with so few concessions, believing his self-professed negotiating prowess will guide him though uncharted diplomatic waters. 
 
Raising expectations in advance of the meeting, Trump said the outcome will rely heavily on his own instincts. The US president, who prides himself on his deal-making prowess, said he will know "within the first minute" of meeting Kim whether the North Korean leader is serious about the nuclear negotiations. 
 
"I think I'll know pretty quickly whether or not, in my opinion, something positive will happen. And if I think it won't happen, I'm not going to waste my time. I don't want to waste his time," Trump said. 
 
"This is a leader who really is an unknown personality," Trump added of Kim. "People don't know much about him. I think that he's going to surprise on the upside, very much on the upside." 
 
White House aides described Trump in the days after receiving the initial Kim invitation as being obsessed by visions of winning the Nobel Peace Prize and using `The Art of the Deal' to put his mark on the global order. In recent weeks Trump's enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat by the challenge of deal-making with such an unpredictable opponent. And there are worries from the White House to East Asian allies that Trump's desire for an agreement will lead him to accept any deal — even if it's a bad one. 
 
Trump is set to dangle before Kim visions of protection, economic investment, and even a White House visit, in return for a commitment to abandon his nuclear weapons program. Kim, US officials say, has agreed to put his stockpile of a half-hundred or more weapons on the table for negotiation, but the two countries have offered differing visions of what that would entail. Despite Kim's apparent eagerness for a summit with Trump, there are doubts that he would fully relinquish his nuclear arsenal, which he may see as his guarantor of his survival. 
 
US defense and intelligence officials have assessed the North to be on the threshold of having the capability to strike anywhere in the continental US with a nuclear-tipped missile _ a capacity that Trump and other US officials have said they would not tolerate. 
 
Trump reiterated his promise Saturday that the US "will watch over and we'll protect" Kim and his government in return for him giving up the nuclear program. 
 
Traveling to Singapore, Trump is looking to temporarily escape his flaring personal conflicts with key US allies over trade as well as domestic pressure like the swirling Russia probe. Acutely aware of his coverage in the media, Trump has enjoyed how North Korea has overshadowed some of the more negative coverage of his tumultuous White House. 
 
Still, Trump's team has not always been on the same page, with Secretary of State&nbspMike Pompeo&nbsp— who has been leading the administration's efforts — more supportive, while the hawkish National Security Adviser John Bolton has been more skeptical. Bolton has been far less visible in the planning process, after a comment he made about favoring the "Libya model" for denuclearization enraged the North Koreans.

The impulsive American president, who just days earlier called into doubt a pillar of the Western alliance, is set to face his match on the global stage as he prepares to meet Kim in Singapore

Embarking on a self-described "mission of peace," President&nbspDonald Trump's seat-of-the-pants foreign policy is facing its toughest test yet as he attempts this week to personally broker an end to North Korea's nuclear program with&nbspKim Jong Un. The impulsive American president, who just days earlier called into doubt a pillar of the Western alliance, is set to face his match on the global stage as he prepares to meet Kim in Singapore. In the historic first meeting between the leaders of the technically-still-warring nations, Trump is prioritizing instinct over planning. Unlike traditional summits between heads of state, where most of the work is completed in advance of a photo-op, US officials say the only thing certain ahead of these talks will be their unpredictability. Ever since Trump shocked allies, White House officials, and, by some accounts, the North Koreans themselves when he accepted Kim's March invitation for a meeting, the two leaders have lurched toward an uncertain encounter that may well determine the fate of millions. "It's unknown territory in the truest sense, but I really feel confident," Trump told reporters Saturday. "I feel that Kim Jong Un wants to do something great for his people and he has that opportunity and he won't have that opportunity again." Trump's engagement with Kim fulfills the North Korean ruling family's long-unrequited yearning for international legitimacy, itself a substantial concession that could weaken more than a generation of US efforts to isolate the country on the global stage. "It's never been done before," Trump said Saturday. "And obviously, what has been done before hasn't worked." A triumvirate of forces is bringing the meeting to fruition, said Scott Snyder, Senior Fellow for Korea Studies and Director of the Program on US-Korea Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, describing the summit as "Produced by Kim, directed by (South Korean President&nbspMoon Jae-in), and inspired by Trump." The hard-hitting sanctions and desire for legitimacy brought the youthful Kim to the table. The South Korean leader's efforts to avert a potentially catastrophic US first strike pushed both leaders to take a risk. And Trump is the first US president willing to sit-down with the autocratic ruler with so few concessions, believing his self-professed negotiating prowess will guide him though uncharted diplomatic waters. Raising expectations in advance of the meeting, Trump said the outcome will rely heavily on his own instincts. The US president, who prides himself on his deal-making prowess, said he will know "within the first minute" of meeting Kim whether the North Korean leader is serious about the nuclear negotiations. "I think I'll know pretty quickly whether or not, in my opinion, something positive will happen. And if I think it won't happen, I'm not going to waste my time. I don't want to waste his time," Trump said. "This is a leader who really is an unknown personality," Trump added of Kim. "People don't know much about him. I think that he's going to surprise on the upside, very much on the upside." White House aides described Trump in the days after receiving the initial Kim invitation as being obsessed by visions of winning the Nobel Peace Prize and using `The Art of the Deal' to put his mark on the global order. In recent weeks Trump's enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat by the challenge of deal-making with such an unpredictable opponent. And there are worries from the White House to East Asian allies that Trump's desire for an agreement will lead him to accept any deal — even if it's a bad one. Trump is set to dangle before Kim visions of protection, economic investment, and even a White House visit, in return for a commitment to abandon his nuclear weapons program. Kim, US officials say, has agreed to put his stockpile of a half-hundred or more weapons on the table for negotiation, but the two countries have offered differing visions of what that would entail. Despite Kim's apparent eagerness for a summit with Trump, there are doubts that he would fully relinquish his nuclear arsenal, which he may see as his guarantor of his survival. US defense and intelligence officials have assessed the North to be on the threshold of having the capability to strike anywhere in the continental US with a nuclear-tipped missile _ a capacity that Trump and other US officials have said they would not tolerate. Trump reiterated his promise Saturday that the US "will watch over and we'll protect" Kim and his government in return for him giving up the nuclear program. Traveling to Singapore, Trump is looking to temporarily escape his flaring personal conflicts with key US allies over trade as well as domestic pressure like the swirling Russia probe. Acutely aware of his coverage in the media, Trump has enjoyed how North Korea has overshadowed some of the more negative coverage of his tumultuous White House. Still, Trump's team has not always been on the same page, with Secretary of State&nbspMike Pompeo — who has been leading the administration's efforts — more supportive, while the hawkish National Security Adviser John Bolton has been more skeptical. Bolton has been far less visible in the planning process, after a comment he made about favoring the "Libya model" for denuclearization enraged the North Koreans.

Trump faces toughest test yet in North Korea summit

Denuclearization of North Korea is the headline topic at Tuesday's summit between Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, but for North Korean officials travelling to Singapore, their top priority is much narrower: protecting their leader.

Security for Kim Jong Un at his first meeting with Trump is expected to be ultra-tight, with measures likely surpassing those seen at the April 27 inter-Korean summit, experts and analysts say.

In late April, 12 lanky male bodyguards made international headlines after they surrounded Kim Jong Un's Mercedes-Benz vehicle and jogged alongside it whenever the North Korean leader moved across the border.

April's display may have been more a show for live television. Now North Korean officials will almost certainly emphasise preventing any sudden mishaps in Kim Jong Un's first visit to a foreign country other than China or South Korea since taking power, said Kim Doo-hyun, professor of protection politics at Korea National Sport University.

"As the venue and time of the summit have already been announced, security for Kim Jong Un will be tighter than for any other VIPs," said the professor, who was the first academic to establish a university major in South Korea on guarding and protection. "I think we can presume that North Korea made more demands to Singapore than the United States did in terms of security."

He added in addition to using bulletproof vehicles, North Korea's security detail would likely deploy layers of protection surrounding the summit venue and try to divert attention from Kim Jong Un's car whenever he moves.

"We'll most likely see an unprecedented scale of protection on land, sea and air as this summit is the biggest issue in the world right now," said Chae Kyou-chir, chief executive of Top Guard, a prominent South Korean security and protection firm.

"Kim Jong Un is revered as a god-like being in his country, while outside the North, he's been subject to hostility because of the way his regime is run, and that's enough to always cause safety concerns for his officials," said Chae.

The North Korean leader is also likely to be served food prepared by a travelling chef from the North, Chae added.

US&nbspPresident Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace."

"I have a clear objective, but I have to say - it's going to be something that will always be spur of the moment," Trump told reporters at a news conference at the G7 summit in Quebec. "You don't know. This has not been done before at this level."

Trump said it would probably take time to reach an agreement with Kim on denuclearization, but at a minimum he believed the summit could produce a "relationship" between the United States and North Korea, which do not have diplomatic ties.

Security for Kim Jong Un at his first meeting with Trump is expected to be ultra-tight, with measures likely surpassing those seen at the April 27 inter-Korean summit, experts and analysts say

Denuclearization of North Korea is the headline topic at Tuesday's summit between Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, but for North Korean officials travelling to Singapore, their top priority is much narrower: protecting their leader. Security for Kim Jong Un at his first meeting with Trump is expected to be ultra-tight, with measures likely surpassing those seen at the April 27 inter-Korean summit, experts and analysts say. In late April, 12 lanky male bodyguards made international headlines after they surrounded Kim Jong Un's Mercedes-Benz vehicle and jogged alongside it whenever the North Korean leader moved across the border. April's display may have been more a show for live television. Now North Korean officials will almost certainly emphasise preventing any sudden mishaps in Kim Jong Un's first visit to a foreign country other than China or South Korea since taking power, said Kim Doo-hyun, professor of protection politics at Korea National Sport University. "As the venue and time of the summit have already been announced, security for Kim Jong Un will be tighter than for any other VIPs," said the professor, who was the first academic to establish a university major in South Korea on guarding and protection. "I think we can presume that North Korea made more demands to Singapore than the United States did in terms of security." He added in addition to using bulletproof vehicles, North Korea's security detail would likely deploy layers of protection surrounding the summit venue and try to divert attention from Kim Jong Un's car whenever he moves. "We'll most likely see an unprecedented scale of protection on land, sea and air as this summit is the biggest issue in the world right now," said Chae Kyou-chir, chief executive of Top Guard, a prominent South Korean security and protection firm. "Kim Jong Un is revered as a god-like being in his country, while outside the North, he's been subject to hostility because of the way his regime is run, and that's enough to always cause safety concerns for his officials," said Chae. The North Korean leader is also likely to be served food prepared by a travelling chef from the North, Chae added. US&nbspPresident Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace." "I have a clear objective, but I have to say - it's going to be something that will always be spur of the moment," Trump told reporters at a news conference at the G7 summit in Quebec. "You don't know. This has not been done before at this level." Trump said it would probably take time to reach an agreement with Kim on denuclearization, but at a minimum he believed the summit could produce a "relationship" between the United States and North Korea, which do not have diplomatic ties.

Unprecedented security measures likely to surround Kim at summit

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/any-agreement-with-north-korea-will-be-spur-of-the-moment-trump-143374">Any agreement with North Korea will be 'spur of the moment': Donald Trump</a>

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace."

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/in-battle-of-tweets-canadas-trudeau-dismisses-trump-critique-143368">In </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/in-battle-of-tweets-canadas-trudeau-dismisses-trump-critique-143368">battle</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/in-battle-of-tweets-canadas-trudeau-dismisses-trump-critique-143368"> of tweets, Canada's Trudeau dismisses Trump critique</a>

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said nothing in his G7 news conference that he has not said before to U.S. President Donald Trump, his office said after Trump criticized Trudeau on Twitter as “weak and dishonest” in the wake of the Group of Seven summit.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/priyanka-chopra-apologises-for-controversial-episode-on-quantico-says-shes-proud-to-be-indian--143390">Priyanka Chopra </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/priyanka-chopra-apologises-for-controversial-episode-on-quantico-says-shes-proud-to-be-indian--143390">apologises</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/priyanka-chopra-apologises-for-controversial-episode-on-quantico-says-shes-proud-to-be-indian--143390"> for </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/priyanka-chopra-apologises-for-controversial-episode-on-quantico-says-shes-proud-to-be-indian--143390">controversial</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/priyanka-chopra-apologises-for-controversial-episode-on-quantico-says-shes-proud-to-be-indian--143390"> episode on 'Quantico', says she's proud to be Indian</a>

Actress Priyanka Chopra on Saturday took to Twitter to issue an apology for the recent controversy over an episode in the American TV Quantico, in which she plays the lead, which showed Indians as terrorists.&nbsp

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rajasthan-man-arrested-for-sacrificing-daughter-to-appease-allah-during-ramzan-143369">Rajasthan: Man arrested for sacrificing </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rajasthan-man-arrested-for-sacrificing-daughter-to-appease-allah-during-ramzan-143369">daughter</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rajasthan-man-arrested-for-sacrificing-daughter-to-appease-allah-during-ramzan-143369"> to 'appease Allah during Ramzan'</a>

A man was arrested on Saturday in Rajasthan's Piparcity area for allegedly sacrificing his daughter to appease Allah during the ongoing holy month of Ramzan, police said.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/bilawal-imran-file-nomination-papers-from-karachi-constituencies-143389">Bilawal, Imran file nomination papers from Karachi constituencies</a>

Pakistan People's Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, and Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf chief Imran Khan filed their nomination papers on Friday for the upcoming general elections in the country, scheduled to be held on July 25.

Any agreement with North Korea will be 'spur of the moment': Donald Trump US President Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace." In battle of tweets, Canada's Trudeau dismisses Trump critique Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said nothing in his G7 news conference that he has not said before to U.S. President Donald Trump, his office said after Trump criticized Trudeau on Twitter as “weak and dishonest” in the wake of the Group of Seven summit. Priyanka Chopra apologises for controversial episode on 'Quantico', says she's proud to be Indian Actress Priyanka Chopra on Saturday took to Twitter to issue an apology for the recent controversy over an episode in the American TV Quantico, in which she plays the lead, which showed Indians as terrorists. Rajasthan: Man arrested for sacrificing daughter to 'appease Allah during Ramzan' A man was arrested on Saturday in Rajasthan's Piparcity area for allegedly sacrificing his daughter to appease Allah during the ongoing holy month of Ramzan, police said. Bilawal, Imran file nomination papers from Karachi constituencies Pakistan People's Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, and Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf chief Imran Khan filed their nomination papers on Friday for the upcoming general elections in the country, scheduled to be held on July 25.

News brief: Big stories of the day

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday threw the G7’s efforts to show a united front into disarray after he became angry with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and said he might double down on import tariffs by hitting the sensitive auto industry.

Trump's bombshell announcement that he was backing out of the Group of Seven communique, made after he left the summit in Canada early, torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on the trade dispute between Washington and its top allies.

"PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the U.S. president tweeted.

In his press conference, Trudeau had spoken of retaliatory measures that Canada would take next month in response to Trump's decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, Mexico and the European Union.

"Canadians, we're polite, we're reasonable but we also will not be pushed around," Trudeau, the host of the two-day summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, told reporters.

Reacting to Trump's tweets, Trudeau's office said: "We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the summit. The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn’t said before - both in public, and in private conversations with the President."

Trump's salvo capped a dizzying two days of controversies that began with his suggestion Russia be readmitted to the G7, then what a French official described as a "rant" full of "recriminations" against U.S. trading partners, followed by Trump's denial of any contention with leaders at the summit and his description of their relationship as a "10."

By ordering his representatives to back out of the communique, Trump appeared to be asserting his oft-stated aim of upsetting the status quo whether by pulling out of the global climate accord or the international nuclear deal with Iran or threats to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The communique, which appeared to have papered over the cracks that have surfaced in the G7, said the leaders of the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Japan agreed on the need for "free, fair, and mutually beneficial trade" and the importance of fighting protectionism.

"We strive to reduce tariff barriers, non-tariff barriers and subsidies," the statement said.

Trump's reversal, announced while he was en route to Singapore for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, sent his G7 partners scrambling.

"We stick to the communique as agreed by all participants," a European official said on condition of anonymity.

Trump's counterparts in the G7 had sought this week to try to find some semblance of consensus with Washington on trade and the other key issues that have formed the basis of the 42-year-old grouping of industrialized nations.

French President Emmanuel Macron had labeled the summit a success before Trump's Twitter posts, saying there was relief within the G7 that an escalation of the trade dispute had been avoided.

"The nature of the debate we had was rather appeasement and it stopped the escalation in terms of behavior,” Macron, who had exchanged terse Twitter messages with Trump in the run-up to the summit, told reporters.

"It allowed a dialogue, where for weeks there were uncoordinated unilateral actions and non-cooperation.”

Macron is aware of the latest twist on the communique and does not have a comment at this time, a French presidential official said.

Trump says his tariffs are meant to protect U.S. industry and workers from unfair international competition as part of his "America First" agenda.

The prospect that he could be moving toward an even greater protectionist trade policy is likely to chill financial markets worried about tit-for-tit escalation that could lead to a full-blown global trade war.

Trump has announced tariffs of up to $150 billion on Chinese goods over U.S. complaints of Beijing's trade practices and its alleged theft of U.S. technology. China has vowed to retaliate in equal measure.

Canada, Mexico and the EU also are moving ahead with their own levies on U.S. goods.

But tariffs on U.S. imports of cars and auto parts would devastate the Canadian auto industry, which is highly integrated with the U.S. sector. They could also damage Japan and Germany.

The Trump administration announced two weeks ago that it would investigate whether auto imports hurt U.S. national security, the first step toward tariffs similar to the ones he imposed on steel and aluminum imports last week.

Earlier on Saturday, Trump told reporters it would be "very easy" to make the case for tariffs on auto imports using the rationale that they threaten national security.

"It's economic.&nbspIt's the balance sheet.&nbspTo have a great military, you need a great balance sheet," he said.

Such a move could make it nearly impossible to renegotiate the terms of the 1994 NAFTA pact between the United States, Canada and Mexico.

On Saturday, Trump repeated his desire to have a sunset clause in an updated NAFTA deal, a demand Trudeau rejected again.

Trump's bombshell announcement that he was backing out of the Group of Seven communique, made after he left the summit in Canada early, torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on the trade dispute between Washington and its top allie

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday threw the G7’s efforts to show a united front into disarray after he became angry with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and said he might double down on import tariffs by hitting the sensitive auto industry. Trump's bombshell announcement that he was backing out of the Group of Seven communique, made after he left the summit in Canada early, torpedoed what appeared to be a fragile consensus on the trade dispute between Washington and its top allies. "PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the U.S. president tweeted. In his press conference, Trudeau had spoken of retaliatory measures that Canada would take next month in response to Trump's decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, Mexico and the European Union. "Canadians, we're polite, we're reasonable but we also will not be pushed around," Trudeau, the host of the two-day summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, told reporters. Reacting to Trump's tweets, Trudeau's office said: "We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the summit. The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn’t said before - both in public, and in private conversations with the President." Trump's salvo capped a dizzying two days of controversies that began with his suggestion Russia be readmitted to the G7, then what a French official described as a "rant" full of "recriminations" against U.S. trading partners, followed by Trump's denial of any contention with leaders at the summit and his description of their relationship as a "10." By ordering his representatives to back out of the communique, Trump appeared to be asserting his oft-stated aim of upsetting the status quo whether by pulling out of the global climate accord or the international nuclear deal with Iran or threats to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement. The communique, which appeared to have papered over the cracks that have surfaced in the G7, said the leaders of the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Japan agreed on the need for "free, fair, and mutually beneficial trade" and the importance of fighting protectionism. "We strive to reduce tariff barriers, non-tariff barriers and subsidies," the statement said. Trump's reversal, announced while he was en route to Singapore for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, sent his G7 partners scrambling. "We stick to the communique as agreed by all participants," a European official said on condition of anonymity. Trump's counterparts in the G7 had sought this week to try to find some semblance of consensus with Washington on trade and the other key issues that have formed the basis of the 42-year-old grouping of industrialized nations. French President Emmanuel Macron had labeled the summit a success before Trump's Twitter posts, saying there was relief within the G7 that an escalation of the trade dispute had been avoided. "The nature of the debate we had was rather appeasement and it stopped the escalation in terms of behavior,” Macron, who had exchanged terse Twitter messages with Trump in the run-up to the summit, told reporters. "It allowed a dialogue, where for weeks there were uncoordinated unilateral actions and non-cooperation.” Macron is aware of the latest twist on the communique and does not have a comment at this time, a French presidential official said. Trump says his tariffs are meant to protect U.S. industry and workers from unfair international competition as part of his "America First" agenda. The prospect that he could be moving toward an even greater protectionist trade policy is likely to chill financial markets worried about tit-for-tit escalation that could lead to a full-blown global trade war. Trump has announced tariffs of up to $150 billion on Chinese goods over U.S. complaints of Beijing's trade practices and its alleged theft of U.S. technology. China has vowed to retaliate in equal measure. Canada, Mexico and the EU also are moving ahead with their own levies on U.S. goods. But tariffs on U.S. imports of cars and auto parts would devastate the Canadian auto industry, which is highly integrated with the U.S. sector. They could also damage Japan and Germany. The Trump administration announced two weeks ago that it would investigate whether auto imports hurt U.S. national security, the first step toward tariffs similar to the ones he imposed on steel and aluminum imports last week. Earlier on Saturday, Trump told reporters it would be "very easy" to make the case for tariffs on auto imports using the rationale that they threaten national security. "It's economic.&nbspIt's the balance sheet.&nbspTo have a great military, you need a great balance sheet," he said. Such a move could make it nearly impossible to renegotiate the terms of the 1994 NAFTA pact between the United States, Canada and Mexico. On Saturday, Trump repeated his desire to have a sunset clause in an updated NAFTA deal, a demand Trudeau rejected again.

Trump torpedoes G7 effort to ease trade spat, threatens auto tariffs

Chinese telecoms companies like ZTE and Huawei face severely tightened access to the US market despite the Trump administration's deal this week to give ZTE a lifeline after it agreed to a steep fine.

Amid persistent worries that their phones, routers and other products will open a path for Beijing's spying on the United States, analysts say the US government will remain broadly closed to products of the two companies and that the US telecoms industry will remain under pressure to avoid their equipment.

Indeed, four Democratic and Republican senators, criticizing the deal that will permit ZTE to resume purchasing US electronics components, proposed legislation Thursday for an outright ban on the government buying products and services from both ZTE and Huawei.

"Huawei and ZTE pose a serious threat to America's national security. These companies have direct links to the Chinese government and Communist Party," said Republican senator Marco Rubio.

"Their products and services are used for espionage and intellectual property theft, and they have been putting the American people and economy at risk without consequence for far too long."

But experts say the move could hinder the growth of next-generation 5G wireless networks in the United States. The two Chinese companies are poised to become global leaders in the 5G rollout, just beginning this year in several countries.

"The overall concern is that these companies are close to the Chinese government," said &nbspPaul Triolo, a China security specialist at the Eurasia Group.

With fifth-generation mobile technology, he said, "the concern becomes magnified" because the technology is heavily cloud-based, potentially leaving sensitive data accessible by the service provider.

Indeed, US officials have repeatedly suggested that the two companies could design their equipment to allow Chinese intelligence to hack into American networks and siphon off personal data and communications from cellphones.

A 2012 congressional report said the use of Huawei and ZTE equipment in US critical infrastructure "could undermine core US national-security interests."

In February, six top intelligence and security chiefs told a Senate panel they would not use equipment from either company.&nbsp

"We are deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any company or entity that is beholden to foreign governments that don't share our values to gain positions of power inside our telecommunications networks," said FBI Director Christopher Wray.

And in May the country's top counterintelligence official, William Evanina, likewise confirmed that ZTE phones are too risky.

The warnings come at a time of growing concerns over Chinese technology and spying.

Facebook was excoriated this week for having allowed Chinese smartphone makers, including Huawei, to access a broad range of Facebook users' personal data.&nbsp

The threat is plausible. Many intelligence experts believe that the US government has asked American technology vendors for backdoor access to technology. And US intelligence is constantly pressuring Silicon Valley to create ways they can get around encryption apps.

Still, no one has publicly detailed any concrete examples of such attempts by Huawei or ZTE.

"So far there is no smoking gun on these companies," said Triolo.

But one recent example shows the risks.

In 2016, US security consultant Kryptowire discovered that millions of Android smartphones made in China contained firmware that relayed their data, contacts and texts back to a Shanghai marketing company every 72 hours, unknown to users.&nbsp

The Shanghai company, which counts Huawei and ZTE as its customers, said the function was intended to monitor how the phones were used, and was not supposed to be installed on units sold in the United States.

But it was, and no one could be certain how the data would be employed.

"We can't know the intention of the persons who actually created the vulnerability," said Tom Karygiannis, vice president of Kryptowire.

"Is it an accident or is it there intentionally?"

But Karygiannis said the danger is near-impossible to avoid in consumer electronics, since all devices have risks, and an overwhelming number of them are manufactured in China.

It's impossible for a consumer to test the firmware on a phone, which is often updated automatically. Only large enterprises can really vet the technology they are getting, he said.

Triolo said network operators can control what's on their equipment.

The problem is proving it's clean.

"It's really hard for the companies to prove the negative of this," he said.

Experts say the move could hinder the growth of next-generation 5G wireless networks in the United States. The two Chinese companies are poised to become global leaders in the 5G rollout, just beginning this year in several countries.

Chinese telecoms companies like ZTE and Huawei face severely tightened access to the US market despite the Trump administration's deal this week to give ZTE a lifeline after it agreed to a steep fine. Amid persistent worries that their phones, routers and other products will open a path for Beijing's spying on the United States, analysts say the US government will remain broadly closed to products of the two companies and that the US telecoms industry will remain under pressure to avoid their equipment. Indeed, four Democratic and Republican senators, criticizing the deal that will permit ZTE to resume purchasing US electronics components, proposed legislation Thursday for an outright ban on the government buying products and services from both ZTE and Huawei. "Huawei and ZTE pose a serious threat to America's national security. These companies have direct links to the Chinese government and Communist Party," said Republican senator Marco Rubio. "Their products and services are used for espionage and intellectual property theft, and they have been putting the American people and economy at risk without consequence for far too long." But experts say the move could hinder the growth of next-generation 5G wireless networks in the United States. The two Chinese companies are poised to become global leaders in the 5G rollout, just beginning this year in several countries. "The overall concern is that these companies are close to the Chinese government," said &nbspPaul Triolo, a China security specialist at the Eurasia Group. With fifth-generation mobile technology, he said, "the concern becomes magnified" because the technology is heavily cloud-based, potentially leaving sensitive data accessible by the service provider. Indeed, US officials have repeatedly suggested that the two companies could design their equipment to allow Chinese intelligence to hack into American networks and siphon off personal data and communications from cellphones. A 2012 congressional report said the use of Huawei and ZTE equipment in US critical infrastructure "could undermine core US national-security interests." In February, six top intelligence and security chiefs told a Senate panel they would not use equipment from either company. "We are deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any company or entity that is beholden to foreign governments that don't share our values to gain positions of power inside our telecommunications networks," said FBI Director Christopher Wray. And in May the country's top counterintelligence official, William Evanina, likewise confirmed that ZTE phones are too risky. The warnings come at a time of growing concerns over Chinese technology and spying. Facebook was excoriated this week for having allowed Chinese smartphone makers, including Huawei, to access a broad range of Facebook users' personal data. The threat is plausible. Many intelligence experts believe that the US government has asked American technology vendors for backdoor access to technology. And US intelligence is constantly pressuring Silicon Valley to create ways they can get around encryption apps. Still, no one has publicly detailed any concrete examples of such attempts by Huawei or ZTE. "So far there is no smoking gun on these companies," said Triolo. But one recent example shows the risks. In 2016, US security consultant Kryptowire discovered that millions of Android smartphones made in China contained firmware that relayed their data, contacts and texts back to a Shanghai marketing company every 72 hours, unknown to users. The Shanghai company, which counts Huawei and ZTE as its customers, said the function was intended to monitor how the phones were used, and was not supposed to be installed on units sold in the United States. But it was, and no one could be certain how the data would be employed. "We can't know the intention of the persons who actually created the vulnerability," said Tom Karygiannis, vice president of Kryptowire. "Is it an accident or is it there intentionally?" But Karygiannis said the danger is near-impossible to avoid in consumer electronics, since all devices have risks, and an overwhelming number of them are manufactured in China. It's impossible for a consumer to test the firmware on a phone, which is often updated automatically. Only large enterprises can really vet the technology they are getting, he said. Triolo said network operators can control what's on their equipment. The problem is proving it's clean. "It's really hard for the companies to prove the negative of this," he said.

Despite Trump deal, China's ZTE, Huawei to face closed doors in US market

US&nbsp;President Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace."

"I have a clear objective, but I have to say - it's going to be something that will always be spur of the moment," Trump told reporters at a news conference at the G7 summit in Quebec. "You don't know. This has not been done before at this level."

The main issue for the June 12 summit in Singapore, which he departed for before the end of the G7 meeting, is the U.S. demand for North Korea to abandon a nuclear weapons program that now threatens the United States.

Trump said it would probably take time to reach an agreement with Kim on denuclearization, but at a minimum he believed the summit could produce a "relationship" between the United States and North Korea, which do not have diplomatic ties.

At a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, Trump said he might extend an invitation to Kim to visit Washington. Pyongyang has rejected giving up its arsenal unilaterally and defends its nuclear and missile programs as a deterrent against what it sees as US&nbsp;aggression.

Trump on Saturday said he would know within a minute whether something good would come out of the summit.

"I think within the first minute I'll know. Just my touch, my feel. That's what I do," Trump said. "And if I think it won't happen - I'm not going to waste my time. I don't want to waste his time."

Trump said his summit with North Korea represented "a one-time" chance to forge peace and that he would know within a minute if his counterpart Kim Jong Un was a serious partner.

Speaking shortly before beginning his long journey to Singapore, Trump told reporters that contacts between the US and North Korean negotiators had been positive in the build-up to Tuesday's historic meeting and talked up its prospects of success.

"It's unknown territory in the truest sense but I really feel confident," Trump said as he prepared to leave the ongoing G7 summit in Canada early and head to Asia.

Trump frequently has boasted of his negotiating prowess as a real estate developer, and his ability to read people, even though his businesses have declared multiple bankruptcies.

The US&nbsp;leader was overall optimistic about the summit with Kim.

A rare direct flight from Pyongyang landed in Singapore on Saturday ahead of the expected arrival of Kim. The Air China Airbus 330 flight at Changi airport raised speculation that a delegation of North Korean officials joined an advance team headed by Kim's close aide, Kim Chang Son, who was in Singapore to prepare for the talks.

Kim is expected to arrive at Changi airport on Sunday, a source involved in the planning of the trip told Reuters on Friday.

Trump said it would probably take time to reach an agreement with Kim on denuclearization, but at a minimum he believed the summit could produce a 'relationship' between the United States and North Korea, which do not have diplomatic ties

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday any agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at next week's summit would be "spur of the moment," underscoring the uncertain outcome of what he called a "mission of peace." "I have a clear objective, but I have to say - it's going to be something that will always be spur of the moment," Trump told reporters at a news conference at the G7 summit in Quebec. "You don't know. This has not been done before at this level." The main issue for the June 12 summit in Singapore, which he departed for before the end of the G7 meeting, is the U.S. demand for North Korea to abandon a nuclear weapons program that now threatens the United States. Trump said it would probably take time to reach an agreement with Kim on denuclearization, but at a minimum he believed the summit could produce a "relationship" between the United States and North Korea, which do not have diplomatic ties. At a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, Trump said he might extend an invitation to Kim to visit Washington. Pyongyang has rejected giving up its arsenal unilaterally and defends its nuclear and missile programs as a deterrent against what it sees as US aggression. Trump on Saturday said he would know within a minute whether something good would come out of the summit. "I think within the first minute I'll know. Just my touch, my feel. That's what I do," Trump said. "And if I think it won't happen - I'm not going to waste my time. I don't want to waste his time." Trump said his summit with North Korea represented "a one-time" chance to forge peace and that he would know within a minute if his counterpart Kim Jong Un was a serious partner. Speaking shortly before beginning his long journey to Singapore, Trump told reporters that contacts between the US and North Korean negotiators had been positive in the build-up to Tuesday's historic meeting and talked up its prospects of success. "It's unknown territory in the truest sense but I really feel confident," Trump said as he prepared to leave the ongoing G7 summit in Canada early and head to Asia. Trump frequently has boasted of his negotiating prowess as a real estate developer, and his ability to read people, even though his businesses have declared multiple bankruptcies. The US leader was overall optimistic about the summit with Kim. A rare direct flight from Pyongyang landed in Singapore on Saturday ahead of the expected arrival of Kim. The Air China Airbus 330 flight at Changi airport raised speculation that a delegation of North Korean officials joined an advance team headed by Kim's close aide, Kim Chang Son, who was in Singapore to prepare for the talks. Kim is expected to arrive at Changi airport on Sunday, a source involved in the planning of the trip told Reuters on Friday.

Any agreement with North Korea will be 'spur of the moment': Donald Trump

Out of a hundred photos that were taken during the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada, this particular picture of German Chancellor Angela Merkel stood out after it was surfaced on social media on Saturday..

The picture of the German Chancellor, shared on her Instagram account, has invited hilarious captions and memes on social media with many calling it an 'iconic photo' of the summit.

Merkel, in the picture can be seen, staring down US President Donald Trump while standing behind a table with both hands pressed firmly into its surface atop some documents.

With as neutral an expression as possible, she stares directly at President Trump, who sits on the other side of the table.

Merkel captioned the picture: "Day two of the G-7 summit in Canada: spontaneous meeting between two working sessions."

Though it is not known that what was really going on at that moment, the image garnered plenty of commentary from some experts on the internet.

While many said that the picture sums up Trump's time at G-7, several others called it a 'power dynamic'.&nbsp"Big power move from Merkel's social media team, posting this extremely memeable picture on her Instagram," said a journalist Elena Cresci.

To many social media users the picture was something more than "a thousand words" while several others had a deeper interpretation of the photograph.

"It looks as if Madam Merkel is teaching The Donald a lesson! Preach Chacellor, preach!", "As US we apologise for his childish behavior", "Show him who's the boss Angela," a social media user said.

"It's like a Renaissance master who captures a complex human narrative in one well-framed canvas. This one photo seems to sum up so much of our times," tweeted American journalist Dan Rather.

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big power move from Merkel's social media team, posting this extremely memeable picture on her Instagram <a href="https://t.co/GK0EFWXqel">pic.twitter.com/GK0EFWXqel</a>
— Elena Cresci (@elenacresci) <a href="https://twitter.com/elenacresci/status/1005501663929565185?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2018</a></blockquote>
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It's like a Renaissance master who captures a complex human narrative in one well-framed canvas. This one photo seems to sum up so much of our times. <a href="https://t.co/I9WppPrnWZ">https://t.co/I9WppPrnWZ</a>
— Dan Rather (@DanRather) <a href="https://twitter.com/DanRather/status/1005579871978967040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Merkel and Trump are also surrounded by slew of other leaders, including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. national security adviser John Bolton.

On the first day of the summit, which is being held in Canada's La Malbaie, Trump pitched the idea of discarding all tariffs and trade barriers between the US and its G-7 allies.

Trump will not attend the second day of the two-day summit on account of preparing for the 'historic' summit of him and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to be held in Singapore on 12 June.

The picture of the German Chancellor, shared on her Instagram account, has invited hilarious captions and memes on social media with many calling it an 'iconic photo' of the summit

Out of a hundred photos that were taken during the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada, this particular picture of German Chancellor Angela Merkel stood out after it was surfaced on social media on Saturday.. The picture of the German Chancellor, shared on her Instagram account, has invited hilarious captions and memes on social media with many calling it an 'iconic photo' of the summit. Merkel, in the picture can be seen, staring down US President Donald Trump while standing behind a table with both hands pressed firmly into its surface atop some documents. With as neutral an expression as possible, she stares directly at President Trump, who sits on the other side of the table. Merkel captioned the picture: "Day two of the G-7 summit in Canada: spontaneous meeting between two working sessions." Though it is not known that what was really going on at that moment, the image garnered plenty of commentary from some experts on the internet. While many said that the picture sums up Trump's time at G-7, several others called it a 'power dynamic'. "Big power move from Merkel's social media team, posting this extremely memeable picture on her Instagram," said a journalist Elena Cresci. To many social media users the picture was something more than "a thousand words" while several others had a deeper interpretation of the photograph. "It looks as if Madam Merkel is teaching The Donald a lesson! Preach Chacellor, preach!", "As US we apologise for his childish behavior", "Show him who's the boss Angela," a social media user said. "It's like a Renaissance master who captures a complex human narrative in one well-framed canvas. This one photo seems to sum up so much of our times," tweeted American journalist Dan Rather. big power move from Merkel's social media team, posting this extremely memeable picture on her Instagram pic.twitter.com/GK0EFWXqel — Elena Cresci (@elenacresci) June 9, 2018 × It's like a Renaissance master who captures a complex human narrative in one well-framed canvas. This one photo seems to sum up so much of our times. https://t.co/I9WppPrnWZ — Dan Rather (@DanRather) June 9, 2018 × Merkel and Trump are also surrounded by slew of other leaders, including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. national security adviser John Bolton. On the first day of the summit, which is being held in Canada's La Malbaie, Trump pitched the idea of discarding all tariffs and trade barriers between the US and its G-7 allies. Trump will not attend the second day of the two-day summit on account of preparing for the 'historic' summit of him and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to be held in Singapore on 12 June.

This picture from G-7 summit 'speaks a thousand words'

Lashing out at the longtime US ally and northern neighbour, President&nbsp;Donald Trump&nbsp;tweeted that Canadian Prime Minister&nbsp;Justin Trudeau&nbsp;is "dishonest & weak" and that the US was pulling back its endorsement of the G-7 summit's communique in part because of what he called Trudeau's "false statements" at a news conference.

In an extraordinary set of tweets aboard Air Force One, on its way to Singapore for Tuesday's summit with North Korea's Kim Jong-un, Trump threw the G-7 summit into disarray Saturday and threatened to escalate his&nbsp;trade war&nbsp;just as Canada released the G-7's official communique. Its statement took a generally positive view of the leaders' positions on trade matters while acknowledging tensions with the US 
 
A few hours earlier, Trudeau had told reporters that all seven leaders had come together to sign the joint declaration. 
 
Trump tweeted: "Based on Justin's false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our US farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our US Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the US Market!"

He followed up by tweeting: "PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our (at)G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, "US Tariffs were kind of insulting" and he "will not be pushed around." Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!"

In a statement, a spokesman for Trudeau did not address Trump's insults. "We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the (hash)G7 summit," spokesman Cameron Ahmad said. "The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn't said before -- both in public, and in private conversations with the President." 
 
During an evening stroll with his wife and another couple, Trudeau was asked a couple of times by a reporter for his reaction to Trump's tweets. And he was also asked for his thoughts on what Trump's move could mean for the future of the G7 . 
 
Trudeau didn't answer the questions, responding to journalists at the photo op: "Good to see you guys ... It's a beautiful evening, a great weekend." 
 
Trump's personal attack on Trudeau is unprecedented in the countries' longstanding relationship. 
 
As he exited the world summit, Trump had delivered a stark warning to America's trading partners not to counter his decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. But the summit host, Trudeau, whose nation was among those singled out by Trump, pushed back and said he would not hesitate to retaliate against his neighbour to the south. 
 
"If they retaliate, they're making a mistake," Trump declared before departing the annual Group of Seven summit, which includes Britain, Italy, France, Germany and Japan.

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Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1005586152076689408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2018</a></blockquote>
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PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our <a href="https://twitter.com/g7?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@G7</a> meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, “US Tariffs were kind of insulting” and he “will not be pushed around.” Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1005586562959093760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Trudeau later said he reiterated to Trump that tariffs will harm industries and workers on both sides of the US-Canada border. He said unleashing retaliatory measures "is not something I relish doing" but that he wouldn't hesitate to do so because "I will always protect Canadian workers and Canadian interests." 
 
"As Canadians, we are polite, we're reasonable, but also we will not be pushed around," Trudeau said. 
 
Despite the sharp differences, Trudeau said all seven leaders had come together to sign a joint declaration despite having "some strong, firm conversations on trade, and specifically on American tariffs." 
 
Trump himself insisted relationships with allies were a "ten" just before he left the summit. But Trump's abbreviated stay at this Quebec resort saw him continuing the same type of tough talk on trade as when he departed the White House, when he accused Trudeau of being "indignant." 
 
The summit came during an ongoing trade dispute with China and served as a precursor to the unprecedented meeting with Kim, in which Trump has sought to extend a hand to the Asian autocrat who has long bedeviled the international order. 
 
"His message from Quebec to Singapore is that he is going to meld the industrial democracies to his will -- and bring back Russia," said Steve Bannon, Trump's former campaign and White House adviser. Bannon said China is "now on notice that Trump will not back down from even allies' complaints in his goal of 'America First."' 
 
Speaking on Saturday during a rare solo news conference, Trump said he pressed for the G-7 countries to eliminate all tariffs, trade barriers and subsidies in their trading practices. He reiterated his longstanding view that the US has been taken advantage of in global trade, adding, "We're like the piggy bank that everybody's robbing, and that ends." 
 
He said US farmers had been harmed by tariffs and other barriers and warned that US trading partners would need to provide him with more favorable terms. "It's going to stop or we'll stop trading with them," he said. 
 
Trump cited progress on reaching an agreement on the&nbsp;North American Free Trade Agreement&nbsp;with Canada and Mexico, saying the final outcome would lead either to an improved trade deal or separate pacts with the two US neighbours. Trump said he was discussing two types of sunset provisions in which any of the countries could leave the deal. A Canadian official said the leaders discussed accelerating the pace of the talks. 
 
But Trudeau objected strenuously to a sunset clause of any length. "If you put an expiry date on any trade deal, that's not a trade deal. That's our unequivocal position," he said. 
 
Prior to his arrival on Friday, the president injected additional controversy by suggesting that the G-7 offer a seat at the table to Russia, which was ousted from the group in 2014. Trump said Saturday that re-admitting Russia to the elite club would be "an asset," telling reporters, "We're looking for peace in the world." Trump said he had not spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a while. 
 
Discussing Russia's absence, Trump made the vague comment that "something happened a while ago where Russia is no longer in. I think it would be an asset to have Russia back in." In fact, Russia was expelled from what was then the G-8 after it invaded and annexed Crimea and for its support for pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine. 
 
Trump placed the blame on his predecessor, President Barack Obama. "He was the one who let Crimea get away -- that was during his administration," he said, adding: "Obama can say all he wants, but he allowed Russia to take Crimea. I may have had a much different attitude." 
 
It was not clear what Trump thought Obama should have done to prevent Putin from sending in Russian troops to seize the Black Sea peninsula from neighbouring Ukraine. 
 
Trudeau said he told Trump that readmitting Russia "is not something that we are even remotely looking at at this time." 
 
Trump departed the annual G-7 gathering after arriving late to a breakfast on gender equity and skipping later sessions on climate change, clean energy and ocean protection.&nbsp;

Trump's recent moves, building on 18 months of nationalist policy-making, left him out of step with the globally minded organization and prompted speculation that the group could fracture into something more like the "G-6 plus one." 
 
A key question was whether the seven countries could agree on a joint statement of priorities at the conclusion of the meeting. Macron said Thursday on Twitter, "The American President may not mind being isolated, but neither do we mind signing a 6 country agreement if need be." Trump said Friday he thinks the group will produce a joint statement.

In public, Trump bantered easily with his fellow leaders, but the meeting came at a tense moment in the relationships, with allies steaming over Trump's new tariffs on imported steel and aluminum from Canada, Mexico and the&nbsp;<a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/European-Union" pg="AS1_InlineMedia#AS1_https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/international-business/trump-throws-g-7-into-disarray-with-tweets-after-he-leaves/articleshow/64525655.cms~European Union-https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/European-Union">European Union</a>. 
 
French President Emmanuel Macron said he and Trump had "open and direct" discussions, adding that he thought there was a way to get a "win-win" outcome on trade. Details remained unclear.

Trump's personal attack on Trudeau is unprecedented in the countries' longstanding relationship

Lashing out at the longtime US ally and northern neighbour, President Donald Trump tweeted that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is "dishonest & weak" and that the US was pulling back its endorsement of the G-7 summit's communique in part because of what he called Trudeau's "false statements" at a news conference. In an extraordinary set of tweets aboard Air Force One, on its way to Singapore for Tuesday's summit with North Korea's Kim Jong-un, Trump threw the G-7 summit into disarray Saturday and threatened to escalate his trade war just as Canada released the G-7's official communique. Its statement took a generally positive view of the leaders' positions on trade matters while acknowledging tensions with the US A few hours earlier, Trudeau had told reporters that all seven leaders had come together to sign the joint declaration. Trump tweeted: "Based on Justin's false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our US farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our US Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the US Market!" He followed up by tweeting: "PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our (at)G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, "US Tariffs were kind of insulting" and he "will not be pushed around." Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" In a statement, a spokesman for Trudeau did not address Trump's insults. "We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the (hash)G7 summit," spokesman Cameron Ahmad said. "The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn't said before -- both in public, and in private conversations with the President." During an evening stroll with his wife and another couple, Trudeau was asked a couple of times by a reporter for his reaction to Trump's tweets. And he was also asked for his thoughts on what Trump's move could mean for the future of the G7 . Trudeau didn't answer the questions, responding to journalists at the photo op: "Good to see you guys ... It's a beautiful evening, a great weekend." Trump's personal attack on Trudeau is unprecedented in the countries' longstanding relationship. As he exited the world summit, Trump had delivered a stark warning to America's trading partners not to counter his decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. But the summit host, Trudeau, whose nation was among those singled out by Trump, pushed back and said he would not hesitate to retaliate against his neighbour to the south. "If they retaliate, they're making a mistake," Trump declared before departing the annual Group of Seven summit, which includes Britain, Italy, France, Germany and Japan. Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2018 × PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, “US Tariffs were kind of insulting” and he “will not be pushed around.” Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2018 × Trudeau later said he reiterated to Trump that tariffs will harm industries and workers on both sides of the US-Canada border. He said unleashing retaliatory measures "is not something I relish doing" but that he wouldn't hesitate to do so because "I will always protect Canadian workers and Canadian interests." "As Canadians, we are polite, we're reasonable, but also we will not be pushed around," Trudeau said. Despite the sharp differences, Trudeau said all seven leaders had come together to sign a joint declaration despite having "some strong, firm conversations on trade, and specifically on American tariffs." Trump himself insisted relationships with allies were a "ten" just before he left the summit. But Trump's abbreviated stay at this Quebec resort saw him continuing the same type of tough talk on trade as when he departed the White House, when he accused Trudeau of being "indignant." The summit came during an ongoing trade dispute with China and served as a precursor to the unprecedented meeting with Kim, in which Trump has sought to extend a hand to the Asian autocrat who has long bedeviled the international order. "His message from Quebec to Singapore is that he is going to meld the industrial democracies to his will -- and bring back Russia," said Steve Bannon, Trump's former campaign and White House adviser. Bannon said China is "now on notice that Trump will not back down from even allies' complaints in his goal of 'America First."' Speaking on Saturday during a rare solo news conference, Trump said he pressed for the G-7 countries to eliminate all tariffs, trade barriers and subsidies in their trading practices. He reiterated his longstanding view that the US has been taken advantage of in global trade, adding, "We're like the piggy bank that everybody's robbing, and that ends." He said US farmers had been harmed by tariffs and other barriers and warned that US trading partners would need to provide him with more favorable terms. "It's going to stop or we'll stop trading with them," he said. Trump cited progress on reaching an agreement on the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico, saying the final outcome would lead either to an improved trade deal or separate pacts with the two US neighbours. Trump said he was discussing two types of sunset provisions in which any of the countries could leave the deal. A Canadian official said the leaders discussed accelerating the pace of the talks. But Trudeau objected strenuously to a sunset clause of any length. "If you put an expiry date on any trade deal, that's not a trade deal. That's our unequivocal position," he said. Prior to his arrival on Friday, the president injected additional controversy by suggesting that the G-7 offer a seat at the table to Russia, which was ousted from the group in 2014. Trump said Saturday that re-admitting Russia to the elite club would be "an asset," telling reporters, "We're looking for peace in the world." Trump said he had not spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a while. Discussing Russia's absence, Trump made the vague comment that "something happened a while ago where Russia is no longer in. I think it would be an asset to have Russia back in." In fact, Russia was expelled from what was then the G-8 after it invaded and annexed Crimea and for its support for pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine. Trump placed the blame on his predecessor, President Barack Obama. "He was the one who let Crimea get away -- that was during his administration," he said, adding: "Obama can say all he wants, but he allowed Russia to take Crimea. I may have had a much different attitude." It was not clear what Trump thought Obama should have done to prevent Putin from sending in Russian troops to seize the Black Sea peninsula from neighbouring Ukraine. Trudeau said he told Trump that readmitting Russia "is not something that we are even remotely looking at at this time." Trump departed the annual G-7 gathering after arriving late to a breakfast on gender equity and skipping later sessions on climate change, clean energy and ocean protection. Trump's recent moves, building on 18 months of nationalist policy-making, left him out of step with the globally minded organization and prompted speculation that the group could fracture into something more like the "G-6 plus one." A key question was whether the seven countries could agree on a joint statement of priorities at the conclusion of the meeting. Macron said Thursday on Twitter, "The American President may not mind being isolated, but neither do we mind signing a 6 country agreement if need be." Trump said Friday he thinks the group will produce a joint statement. In public, Trump bantered easily with his fellow leaders, but the meeting came at a tense moment in the relationships, with allies steaming over Trump's new tariffs on imported steel and aluminum from Canada, Mexico and the European Union. French President Emmanuel Macron said he and Trump had "open and direct" discussions, adding that he thought there was a way to get a "win-win" outcome on trade. Details remained unclear.

Trump throws G-7 into disarray with tweets after he leaves

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said nothing in his G7 news conference that he has not said before to U.S. President Donald Trump, his office said after Trump criticized Trudeau on Twitter as “weak and dishonest” in the wake of the Group of Seven summit.

“The prime minister said nothing he hasn’t said before — both in public, and in private conversations with the president,” Trudeau’s office said in a statement released on Twitter, which added Trudeau remained focused on what was accomplished at the two-day summit in Quebec.

After departing from the Quebec summit for Singapore, Trump tweeted that Trudeau's remarks at a news conference, where he said Canada would not be pushed around, "were very dishonest and weak".

"PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the US&nbsppresident tweeted.

The Group of Seven leaders came to their summit in Canada braced for battle, and while everyone had smiles ready for the cameras, behind the scenes U.S. President Donald Trump delivered recriminations on trade to U.S. allies, leaving the once united club deeply divided. Trade dominated the two-day summit that began on Friday (June 8) with leaders of Germany, France, Japan, Canada, Britain and Italy returning to the topic repeatedly in meetings.

"One could say that we weren't able to completely turn around President Trump's approach on trade, he's continuing to say what he says, fine, so be it," Trudeau said.

Leaders who had vowed to confront Trump over his decision to impose tariffs on U.S. allies last week as part of his "America First" agenda, showered Trump with data one after the other.

"I told the president that we would be moving forward with retaliatory equivalent tariffs as of July 1st," Trudeau said. "And he expressed to me that he thought that would be a mistake and I certainly agree that it's not something that we want to do. I don't want to hurt American workers. They're our neighbors, they're our friends. But my job is to stand up for Canadian workers, Canadian interests, and I will do that without flinching."

Trump had also suggested that Russia be re-admitted to the G7. Russia was suspended from the group in 2014 because of its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said EU countries at the summit agreed that the conditions to readmit Russia had not been met and even Moscow seemed to reject the suggestion.

"I said very simply that it is not something we are even remotely interested in looking at at this time, to have Russia return to the G7," Trudeau said.

After departing from the Quebec summit for Singapore, Trump tweeted that Trudeau's remarks at a news conference, where he said Canada would not be pushed around, 'were very dishonest and weak'

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said nothing in his G7 news conference that he has not said before to U.S. President Donald Trump, his office said after Trump criticized Trudeau on Twitter as “weak and dishonest” in the wake of the Group of Seven summit. “The prime minister said nothing he hasn’t said before — both in public, and in private conversations with the president,” Trudeau’s office said in a statement released on Twitter, which added Trudeau remained focused on what was accomplished at the two-day summit in Quebec. After departing from the Quebec summit for Singapore, Trump tweeted that Trudeau's remarks at a news conference, where he said Canada would not be pushed around, "were very dishonest and weak". "PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the US&nbsppresident tweeted. The Group of Seven leaders came to their summit in Canada braced for battle, and while everyone had smiles ready for the cameras, behind the scenes U.S. President Donald Trump delivered recriminations on trade to U.S. allies, leaving the once united club deeply divided. Trade dominated the two-day summit that began on Friday (June 8) with leaders of Germany, France, Japan, Canada, Britain and Italy returning to the topic repeatedly in meetings. "One could say that we weren't able to completely turn around President Trump's approach on trade, he's continuing to say what he says, fine, so be it," Trudeau said. Leaders who had vowed to confront Trump over his decision to impose tariffs on U.S. allies last week as part of his "America First" agenda, showered Trump with data one after the other. "I told the president that we would be moving forward with retaliatory equivalent tariffs as of July 1st," Trudeau said. "And he expressed to me that he thought that would be a mistake and I certainly agree that it's not something that we want to do. I don't want to hurt American workers. They're our neighbors, they're our friends. But my job is to stand up for Canadian workers, Canadian interests, and I will do that without flinching." Trump had also suggested that Russia be re-admitted to the G7. Russia was suspended from the group in 2014 because of its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said EU countries at the summit agreed that the conditions to readmit Russia had not been met and even Moscow seemed to reject the suggestion. "I said very simply that it is not something we are even remotely interested in looking at at this time, to have Russia return to the G7," Trudeau said.

In battle of tweets, Canada's Trudeau dismisses Trump critique

&nbspUS President Donald Trump said on Saturday (June 9) that he has asked US representatives not to endorse the joint communique put out by the Group of Seven leaders after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's "false statements" at a news conference.

After departing from the Quebec summit for Singapore, Trump tweeted that Trudeau's remarks at a news conference, where he said Canada would not be pushed around, "were very dishonest and weak".

"PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the US president tweeted.

&nbsp

&nbspUS President Donald Trump said on Saturday (June 9) that he has asked US representatives not to endorse the joint communique put out by the Group of Seven leaders after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's "false statements" at a news conference. After departing from the Quebec summit for Singapore, Trump tweeted that Trudeau's remarks at a news conference, where he said Canada would not be pushed around, "were very dishonest and weak". "PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, 'US Tariffs were kind of insulting' and he 'will not be pushed around.' Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!" the US president tweeted.

Trump says he does not endorse G7 communique, after 'weak' Trudeau comments

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un arrived in Singapore on Sunday ahead of the crucial and historic summit with US President Donald Trump.&nbsp;

A long convoy of the North Korean leader was seen going out of Changi Airport's VIP area. He is set to have a bilateral meeting with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong later on Sunday.

The highly anticipated summit between the two leaders on June 12 will centre on Pyongyang's nuclear programme and economic assistance from Washington.

Kim will be meeting Singapore Prime Minister&nbsp;Lee Hsien Loong in the city-state later today.&nbsp;

Security around the St Regis and Shangri-La Hotel near the shopping area of Orchard Road were tightened with road blocks set to kick in from June 10 onwards. The two luxury hotels are said to be where Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un will be staying during their four-day visit. Neither of the hotels have confirmed.

In the meeting on June 12, US President Donald Trump will deploy a mix of charm and pressure to coax North Korean leader Kim Jong Un into a deal to give up nuclear weapons, trusting his gut instinct over briefing books in his ability to strike an accord, aides and former administration officials said.

The Singapore summit will be the first face-to-face meeting between Trump, the former reality TV star who likes to keep people guessing up to a cliffhanger finish, and Kim, the heir to a reclusive dynasty with a history of reneging on promises to curb its nuclear ambitions. More than 3,000 journalists are due in town, along with delegations and security entourages.

The main issue for the June 12 summit in Singapore is the US demand for North Korea to abandon a nuclear weapons program that now threatens the United States.

North Korea has rejected giving up its arsenal unilaterally and defends its nuclear and missile programs as a deterrent against what it sees as US aggression. The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the Korean War.

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North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un arrives in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Singapore?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Singapore</a> ahead of meeting with US President Donald Trump on June 12. <a href="https://t.co/In1mwQfNMz">pic.twitter.com/In1mwQfNMz</a>
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The main issue for the June 12 summit in Singapore is the US demand for North Korea to abandon a nuclear weapons program that now threatens the United States

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un arrived in Singapore on Sunday ahead of the crucial and historic summit with US President Donald Trump. A long convoy of the North Korean leader was seen going out of Changi Airport's VIP area. He is set to have a bilateral meeting with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong later on Sunday. The highly anticipated summit between the two leaders on June 12 will centre on Pyongyang's nuclear programme and economic assistance from Washington. Kim will be meeting Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in the city-state later today. Security around the St Regis and Shangri-La Hotel near the shopping area of Orchard Road were tightened with road blocks set to kick in from June 10 onwards. The two luxury hotels are said to be where Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un will be staying during their four-day visit. Neither of the hotels have confirmed. In the meeting on June 12, US President Donald Trump will deploy a mix of charm and pressure to coax North Korean leader Kim Jong Un into a deal to give up nuclear weapons, trusting his gut instinct over briefing books in his ability to strike an accord, aides and former administration officials said. The Singapore summit will be the first face-to-face meeting between Trump, the former reality TV star who likes to keep people guessing up to a cliffhanger finish, and Kim, the heir to a reclusive dynasty with a history of reneging on promises to curb its nuclear ambitions. More than 3,000 journalists are due in town, along with delegations and security entourages. The main issue for the June 12 summit in Singapore is the US demand for North Korea to abandon a nuclear weapons program that now threatens the United States. North Korea has rejected giving up its arsenal unilaterally and defends its nuclear and missile programs as a deterrent against what it sees as US aggression. The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the Korean War. North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un arrives in #Singapore ahead of meeting with US President Donald Trump on June 12. pic.twitter.com/In1mwQfNMz — ANI (@ANI) June 10, 2018 ×

North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un arrives in Singapore ahead of historic summit

As US President called G-7 countries to admit Russia, French president Emmanuel Macron said European members "unanimously oppose" Russia's entry.

"I have been Russia's worst nightmare," Trump said, adding, "but with that being said, Russia should be in this meeting," the US president said as he left for the G7 meet. Trump's move was backed by Italian PM &nbsp;Minister Giuseppe Conti which is a G7 member.&nbsp;

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Le dialogue, encore et toujours. Échanger, tenter de convaincre, sans cesse, pour défendre les intérêts des Français et aussi de tous ceux qui croient que le monde ne se construit qu'ensemble. Avec le Président américain, avant l'ouverture du G7. <a href="https://t.co/7iI2rtAoEN">pic.twitter.com/7iI2rtAoEN</a>
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) <a href="https://twitter.com/EmmanuelMacron/status/1005138461924438017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 8, 2018</a></blockquote>
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However, both France and Germany opposed Russia's entry into the elite club.

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"We are in agreement that a return of Russia to the G7 cannot happen unless substantial progress is made in terms of the problems with Ukraine," Merkel said.

The G7 nations had ended Russia's membership after it annexed Crimea in 2014, the group was formerly known as G8. The US president strongly backed Russia's entry, saying: "Why are we having a meeting without Russia being in the meeting?

"I would recommend - it's up to them. But Russia should be in the meeting, should be a part of it."

French President Emmanuel Macron's office said European members of the G7 will "unanimously oppose US President Donald Trump's call for Russia to be readmitted into the club".

Reports said British PM Theresa May was also against Russia's entry.

Russia's entry has been a sticking point with Europeans with reports of Russians allegedly involved in poisoning an ex-spy in Britain which led to several European countries recalling their diplomats from Russia with British PM Theresa May taking a tough stand for renewed international pressure on Putin to address the issue including the Crimean annexation.

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Reports said British PM Theresa May was also against Russia's entry.

As US President called G-7 countries to admit Russia, French president Emmanuel Macron said European members "unanimously oppose" Russia's entry. "I have been Russia's worst nightmare," Trump said, adding, "but with that being said, Russia should be in this meeting," the US president said as he left for the G7 meet. Trump's move was backed by Italian PM Minister Giuseppe Conti which is a G7 member. Le dialogue, encore et toujours. Échanger, tenter de convaincre, sans cesse, pour défendre les intérêts des Français et aussi de tous ceux qui croient que le monde ne se construit qu'ensemble. Avec le Président américain, avant l'ouverture du G7. pic.twitter.com/7iI2rtAoEN — Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 8, 2018 × However, both France and Germany opposed Russia's entry into the elite club. × "We are in agreement that a return of Russia to the G7 cannot happen unless substantial progress is made in terms of the problems with Ukraine," Merkel said. The G7 nations had ended Russia's membership after it annexed Crimea in 2014, the group was formerly known as G8. The US president strongly backed Russia's entry, saying: "Why are we having a meeting without Russia being in the meeting? "I would recommend - it's up to them. But Russia should be in the meeting, should be a part of it." French President Emmanuel Macron's office said European members of the G7 will "unanimously oppose US President Donald Trump's call for Russia to be readmitted into the club". Reports said British PM Theresa May was also against Russia's entry. Russia's entry has been a sticking point with Europeans with reports of Russians allegedly involved in poisoning an ex-spy in Britain which led to several European countries recalling their diplomats from Russia with British PM Theresa May taking a tough stand for renewed international pressure on Putin to address the issue including the Crimean annexation.

Europeans nations 'unanimously oppose' President Trump's call to admit Russia into G7: Macron

Former National Basketball Association star Dennis Rodman said on Friday that he will be attending the historic summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un in Singapore on June 12.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The basketball star took to Twitter and announced: "I will be flying to Singapore for the historical Summit. I'll give whatever support is needed to my friends, @realDonaldTrump and Marshall Kim Jong Un," Rodman said.

However, soon after, Trump rubbished the news in a Tweet posted on Friday in which he confirmed that it was not true, saying that Rodman was probably "drunk or on drugs."

He wrote: "Dennis Rodman was either drunk or on drugs (delusional) when he said I wanted to go to North Korea with him. Glad I fired him on Apprentice!"

Kim Jong-Un and Rodman have famously built a bizarre friendship, and the former basketball player brought the dictator a copy of 'The Art of the Deal' for his birthday last year.

Dennis Rodman, 56, made his first trip to North Korea in 2013 with Vice Media correspondent Ryan Duffy, to host basketball exhibitions.

He met Kim Jong-un there and later declared him "a friend for life." The statement came after three visits to Pyongyang that year after which he suggested President Barack Obama call the leader due to their shared love of basketball.

Since then he has made a few visits to the country - with the most recent being June 2017, taking the tally up to around five trips.

After that five-day visit in June 2017, Rodman told reporters: "I’m just trying to open the door."

This trip, like the last one, is sponsored by potcoin.com, the crypto-currency provider for the legal marijuana industry.

Rodman has faced ridicule and criticism for his trips to North Korea, which some US politicians and activists view as serving only as fodder for North Korean propaganda.

<img alt="2018-06-09T041627Z_1_LWD001442Y7GN_RTRWNEV_E_6043-NORTHKOREA-USA-RODMAN-FILE.JPG" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" height="432" src="http://images.wionews.com/iniline-images/2018-06-09T041627Z_1_LWD001442Y7GN_RTRWNEV_E_6043-NORTHKOREA-USA-RODMAN-FILE.JPG" width="768" />

His earlier visits to North Korea included a basketball game that he organized, an event chronicled in the documentary film "Big Bang in Pyongyang," which featured Rodman singing "Happy Birthday" to Kim, as well as scenes of inebriated and erratic behavior by the basketball Hall of Famer.

Before Trump became president,&nbsp;Rodman&nbsp;appeared twice on his "Celebrity Apprentice" show and praised the billionaire real estate developer on Twitter during the 2016 presidential campaign.

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To all Americans and the rest of the world I’m honored to call <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> a friend. He’s one of the best negotiators of all time and I’m looking forward to him adding to his historic success at the Singapore Summit. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Peace?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Peace</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Love?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Love</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakeAmericaGreatAgain?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakeAmericaGreatAgain</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakeTheWorldGreatAgain?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakeTheWorldGreatAgain</a> <a href="https://t.co/3t3VBMSGaL">pic.twitter.com/3t3VBMSGaL</a>
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&nbsp;

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Dennis Rodman was either drunk or on drugs (delusional) when he said I wanted to go to North Korea with him. Glad I fired him on Apprentice!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/464217937516040193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2014</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Kim and Rodman have famously built a bizarre friendship, and the former basketball player brought the dictator a copy of 'The Art of the Deal' for his birthday last year

Former National Basketball Association star Dennis Rodman said on Friday that he will be attending the historic summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un in Singapore on June 12. The basketball star took to Twitter and announced: "I will be flying to Singapore for the historical Summit. I'll give whatever support is needed to my friends, @realDonaldTrump and Marshall Kim Jong Un," Rodman said. However, soon after, Trump rubbished the news in a Tweet posted on Friday in which he confirmed that it was not true, saying that Rodman was probably "drunk or on drugs." He wrote: "Dennis Rodman was either drunk or on drugs (delusional) when he said I wanted to go to North Korea with him. Glad I fired him on Apprentice!" Kim Jong-Un and Rodman have famously built a bizarre friendship, and the former basketball player brought the dictator a copy of 'The Art of the Deal' for his birthday last year. Dennis Rodman, 56, made his first trip to North Korea in 2013 with Vice Media correspondent Ryan Duffy, to host basketball exhibitions. He met Kim Jong-un there and later declared him "a friend for life." The statement came after three visits to Pyongyang that year after which he suggested President Barack Obama call the leader due to their shared love of basketball. Since then he has made a few visits to the country - with the most recent being June 2017, taking the tally up to around five trips. After that five-day visit in June 2017, Rodman told reporters: "I’m just trying to open the door." This trip, like the last one, is sponsored by potcoin.com, the crypto-currency provider for the legal marijuana industry. Rodman has faced ridicule and criticism for his trips to North Korea, which some US politicians and activists view as serving only as fodder for North Korean propaganda. His earlier visits to North Korea included a basketball game that he organized, an event chronicled in the documentary film "Big Bang in Pyongyang," which featured Rodman singing "Happy Birthday" to Kim, as well as scenes of inebriated and erratic behavior by the basketball Hall of Famer. Before Trump became president, Rodman appeared twice on his "Celebrity Apprentice" show and praised the billionaire real estate developer on Twitter during the 2016 presidential campaign. To all Americans and the rest of the world I’m honored to call @POTUS a friend. He’s one of the best negotiators of all time and I’m looking forward to him adding to his historic success at the Singapore Summit. #Peace #Love #MakeAmericaGreatAgain #MakeTheWorldGreatAgain pic.twitter.com/3t3VBMSGaL — Dennis Rodman (@dennisrodman) June 8, 2018 × Dennis Rodman was either drunk or on drugs (delusional) when he said I wanted to go to North Korea with him. Glad I fired him on Apprentice! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 8, 2014 ×

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman to attend Singapore summit as Trump calls him 'delusional'

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/-europeans-nations-unanimously-oppose-president-trumps-call-to-admit-russia-into-g7-macron-143208">Europeans nations 'unanimously oppose' President Trump's call to admit Russia into G7: Macron</a>

As US President called G-7 countries to admit Russia, French president Emmanuel Macron said European members "unanimously oppose" Russia's entry.

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/watch-macron-may-have-put-too-much-pressure-on-trump-at-the-g7-summit-leaves-thumb-imprint--143212">Watch: Macron may have put 'too much pressure' on Trump at G7, leaves thumb imprint</a>

French President Emmanuel Macron on&nbsp<a href="http://wionews.com/world/-europeans-nations-unanimously-oppose-president-trumps-call-to-admit-russia-into-g7-macron-143208">Friday met US President Donald Trump in&nbsp</a>Canada for the continued trade talks and put pressure on the US on its decision to impose tariffs&nbspon metals imports. But, he may have put a tad bit too much, which was evidently seen by the aftermath of the handshake - which left a prominent imprint on the US Presidents hand.&nbsp

<a href="http://wionews.com/south-asia/despite-losing-unsc-seat-maldives-govt-thanks-india-for-support--143215">Despite losing UNSC seat, Maldives govt thanks India for support</a>

A day after Maldives failed to secure a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, losing to&nbspIndonesia, the government of Maldives thanked the Indian government for supporting its candidature in the UNSC.

<a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/pm-modi-heads-to-china-for-sco-summit-143220">PM Modi heads to China for SCO Summit</a>

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning departed for China's Qingdao to attend the two-day long 18th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

<a href="http://wionews.com/south-asia/pak-interim-pm-reviews-fatf-requirements-on-terror-financing-143210">Pak interim PM reviews FATF requirements on terror financing</a>

Pakistan's interim Prime Minister Nasir-ul-Mulk reviewed on Friday the measures taken by the country to meet the requirement of the global watchdog Financial Action Task Force over terrorism financing.

&nbsp

Europeans nations 'unanimously oppose' President Trump's call to admit Russia into G7: Macron As US President called G-7 countries to admit Russia, French president Emmanuel Macron said European members "unanimously oppose" Russia's entry. Watch: Macron may have put 'too much pressure' on Trump at G7, leaves thumb imprint French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday met US President Donald Trump in Canada for the continued trade talks and put pressure on the US on its decision to impose tariffs&nbspon metals imports. But, he may have put a tad bit too much, which was evidently seen by the aftermath of the handshake - which left a prominent imprint on the US Presidents hand. Despite losing UNSC seat, Maldives govt thanks India for support A day after Maldives failed to secure a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, losing to&nbspIndonesia, the government of Maldives thanked the Indian government for supporting its candidature in the UNSC. PM Modi heads to China for SCO Summit Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning departed for China's Qingdao to attend the two-day long 18th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). Pak interim PM reviews FATF requirements on terror financing Pakistan's interim Prime Minister Nasir-ul-Mulk reviewed on Friday the measures taken by the country to meet the requirement of the global watchdog Financial Action Task Force over terrorism financing.

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is contemplating pardoning boxing great Muhammad Ali, whose refusal of military service during the Vietnam War made him a champion of the US civil rights and anti-war movements.

However, soon after Ali's family lawyer issued a prompt response from the late heavyweight champion's estate: thanks but no thanks.

"We appreciate President Trump's sentiment, but a pardon is unnecessary. The US&nbsp;Supreme Court overturned the conviction of Muhammad Ali in a unanimous decision in 1971. There is no conviction from which a pardon is needed," said Ron Tweel, a lawyer for the boxer's estate and his widow, Lonnie.

Tweel, reached by telephone at his home in Virginia, said the White House had not contacted him or Lonnie Ali about a potential pardon. He said he had been in contact with the widow after Trump's comments and they decided to issue a statement on behalf of the family.

"We heard what he was contemplating and it needed a response," he said.

Ali, who died in 2016, was convicted of draft evasion in 1967 and sentenced to five years in prison, but the conviction was overturned on appeal by the US Supreme Court in 1971.

"I'm thinking about Muhammad Ali. I'm thinking about that seriously. And some others and some folks who have sentences that aren't fair," Trump told reporters at the White House before heading to Canada for the G7 summit.

Trump described Ali as "not very popular" at the time due to his denial of no responsibility for any mistransmission of, orinterference with, this communication service in the military during the Vietnam War.

But while controversial, Ali's resistance on grounds of conscience made him a hero to many during a highly polarized period marked by struggles over racial inequality and rising opposition to the US role in the Vietnam War.

A charismatic fighter who won his first world heavyweight title in 1964, Ali was banned from boxing for three years as a result of his conviction but went on to reclaim the championship in a stellar career that lived up to his boast of being "the Greatest."

Trump said many of the 3,000 people he was considering for pardons were treated unfairly or given unfairly long sentences. Trump was speaking to reporters on the White House lawn on a wide range of topics before he departed for a Group of Seven summit in Canada, where other G7 leaders are set to clash with him over trade.

Trump said many of the 3,000 people he was considering for pardons were treated unfairly or given unfairly long sentences

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is contemplating pardoning boxing great Muhammad Ali, whose refusal of military service during the Vietnam War made him a champion of the US civil rights and anti-war movements. However, soon after Ali's family lawyer issued a prompt response from the late heavyweight champion's estate: thanks but no thanks. "We appreciate President Trump's sentiment, but a pardon is unnecessary. The US Supreme Court overturned the conviction of Muhammad Ali in a unanimous decision in 1971. There is no conviction from which a pardon is needed," said Ron Tweel, a lawyer for the boxer's estate and his widow, Lonnie. Tweel, reached by telephone at his home in Virginia, said the White House had not contacted him or Lonnie Ali about a potential pardon. He said he had been in contact with the widow after Trump's comments and they decided to issue a statement on behalf of the family. "We heard what he was contemplating and it needed a response," he said. Ali, who died in 2016, was convicted of draft evasion in 1967 and sentenced to five years in prison, but the conviction was overturned on appeal by the US Supreme Court in 1971. "I'm thinking about Muhammad Ali. I'm thinking about that seriously. And some others and some folks who have sentences that aren't fair," Trump told reporters at the White House before heading to Canada for the G7 summit. Trump described Ali as "not very popular" at the time due to his denial of no responsibility for any mistransmission of, orinterference with, this communication service in the military during the Vietnam War. But while controversial, Ali's resistance on grounds of conscience made him a hero to many during a highly polarized period marked by struggles over racial inequality and rising opposition to the US role in the Vietnam War. A charismatic fighter who won his first world heavyweight title in 1964, Ali was banned from boxing for three years as a result of his conviction but went on to reclaim the championship in a stellar career that lived up to his boast of being "the Greatest." Trump said many of the 3,000 people he was considering for pardons were treated unfairly or given unfairly long sentences. Trump was speaking to reporters on the White House lawn on a wide range of topics before he departed for a Group of Seven summit in Canada, where other G7 leaders are set to clash with him over trade.

Trump considers pardoning Muhammad Ali, his lawyer replies 'no thank you'

French President Emmanuel Macron on <a href="http://wionews.com/world/-europeans-nations-unanimously-oppose-president-trumps-call-to-admit-russia-into-g7-macron-143208">Friday met US President Donald Trump in </a>Canada for the continued trade talks and put pressure on the US on its decision to impose tariffs&nbsp;on metals imports. But, he may have put a tad bit too much, which was evidently seen by the aftermath of the handshake - which left a prominent imprint on the US Presidents hand.&nbsp;

Macron said on Friday that it was possible to make progress on trade issues that have split the United States and its allies after meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Following an exchange of terse messages before the summit, the two leaders struck a conciliatory tone with Trump saying that the relationship was special, but that sometimes tests occur when it comes to trade. Trump also said Macron has been helping to work on trade.&nbsp;

Previously, Macron has said that his phone calls with US President Donald Trump and other world leaders were just like sausages: better not explain what’s inside.

Borrowing a famous quote from 19th-century Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck, Macron summed up his policy of refraining from making off-the-record comments about his conversations with other world leaders.

“As Bismarck used to say, if we explained to people how sausages were made, it’s unlikely they’d keep eating them,” Macron told reporters. “So I like it when people see the finished meal, but I’m not convinced the kitchen commentary helps with delivering the meal or eating it,” Macron added.

Meanwhile, the United States and European Union will establish a dialogue on trade within the next two weeks, a French official said on Friday, signalling a modest step forward for bitterly divided allies at a Group of Seven summit in Canada.

US trading partners have been furious over President Donald Trump's decision last week to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, the European Union and Mexico as part of his "America First" agenda. Some countries have retaliated with their own levies on US imports.

While G7 leaders confronted Trump with a slew of data on imports and exports in a bid to sway his thinking, Trump countered his own numbers and held his position that the United States was at a disadvantage on international trade, an official who followed the talks said.

But Trump struck a more affable tone after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, saying the French leader was helping work out trade issues.

"Something's going to happen. I think it will be very positive," Trump said, without giving details.

Macron said it was possible to advance the trade issues that have split the US and its allies.

&nbsp;

Macron said on Friday that it was possible to make progress on trade issues that have split the United States and its allies after meeting with US President Donald Trump

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday met US President Donald Trump in Canada for the continued trade talks and put pressure on the US on its decision to impose tariffs on metals imports. But, he may have put a tad bit too much, which was evidently seen by the aftermath of the handshake - which left a prominent imprint on the US Presidents hand. Macron said on Friday that it was possible to make progress on trade issues that have split the United States and its allies after meeting with US President Donald Trump. Following an exchange of terse messages before the summit, the two leaders struck a conciliatory tone with Trump saying that the relationship was special, but that sometimes tests occur when it comes to trade. Trump also said Macron has been helping to work on trade. Previously, Macron has said that his phone calls with US President Donald Trump and other world leaders were just like sausages: better not explain what’s inside. Borrowing a famous quote from 19th-century Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck, Macron summed up his policy of refraining from making off-the-record comments about his conversations with other world leaders. “As Bismarck used to say, if we explained to people how sausages were made, it’s unlikely they’d keep eating them,” Macron told reporters. “So I like it when people see the finished meal, but I’m not convinced the kitchen commentary helps with delivering the meal or eating it,” Macron added. Meanwhile, the United States and European Union will establish a dialogue on trade within the next two weeks, a French official said on Friday, signalling a modest step forward for bitterly divided allies at a Group of Seven summit in Canada. US trading partners have been furious over President Donald Trump's decision last week to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, the European Union and Mexico as part of his "America First" agenda. Some countries have retaliated with their own levies on US imports. While G7 leaders confronted Trump with a slew of data on imports and exports in a bid to sway his thinking, Trump countered his own numbers and held his position that the United States was at a disadvantage on international trade, an official who followed the talks said. But Trump struck a more affable tone after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, saying the French leader was helping work out trade issues. "Something's going to happen. I think it will be very positive," Trump said, without giving details. Macron said it was possible to advance the trade issues that have split the US and its allies.

Watch: Macron may have put 'too much pressure' on Trump at G7, leaves thumb imprint

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he may invite North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un to the White House if the Singapore summit goes well.

His remarks came after his meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe where the two leaders discussed the forthcoming Singapore summit.

Answering a question if he would invite the North Korean leader to White House or Mar-a-lago, Trump said: "Maybe we'll start with the White House".

He, however, clarified that he would not hesitate in walking out of the meeting if his goals were not achieved.

He said, "I am totally prepared to walk. It could happen. Maybe it won't be necessary. I hope it won't be necessary to walk, because I really believe that Kim Jong-un wants to do something that is going to be great for his people, and also great for his family, and great for himself".

"I am totally prepared to walk away. I did it once before. You have to be able to walk away. If you're not going to be able to walk away -- we didn't walk away from the horrible Iran deal that was signed, and if you look at what's happened, since I signed that deal, Iran and in all fairness, I say it with great respect for the people of Iran, but Iran is acting a lot differently. They're no longer looking so much to the Mediterranean", Trump added.

After some back and forth, the highly anticipated meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un is scheduled for June 12.

The two leaders were hurling insults and threats of war with each other for a very long time.&nbsp;

The rhetoric began to cool during the Winter Olympics in South Korea, and by mid-March, the two sides decided to a face-to-face.

(With input from Agencies)

Answering a question if he would invite the North Korean leader to White House or Mar-a-lago, Trump said: "Maybe we'll start with the White House". He, however, clarified that he would not hesitate in walking out of the meeting if his goals were not achieved

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he may invite North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un to the White House if the Singapore summit goes well. His remarks came after his meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe where the two leaders discussed the forthcoming Singapore summit. Answering a question if he would invite the North Korean leader to White House or Mar-a-lago, Trump said: "Maybe we'll start with the White House". He, however, clarified that he would not hesitate in walking out of the meeting if his goals were not achieved. He said, "I am totally prepared to walk. It could happen. Maybe it won't be necessary. I hope it won't be necessary to walk, because I really believe that Kim Jong-un wants to do something that is going to be great for his people, and also great for his family, and great for himself". "I am totally prepared to walk away. I did it once before. You have to be able to walk away. If you're not going to be able to walk away -- we didn't walk away from the horrible Iran deal that was signed, and if you look at what's happened, since I signed that deal, Iran and in all fairness, I say it with great respect for the people of Iran, but Iran is acting a lot differently. They're no longer looking so much to the Mediterranean", Trump added. After some back and forth, the highly anticipated meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un is scheduled for June 12. The two leaders were hurling insults and threats of war with each other for a very long time. The rhetoric began to cool during the Winter Olympics in South Korea, and by mid-March, the two sides decided to a face-to-face. (With input from Agencies)

Might invite Kim to US if talks go well: Trump

President Donald Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani has claimed that the North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un begged for the summit with US President Donald Trump after he cancelled it.

He said the North Korean leader "got on his hands and knees and begged".

While speaking at an investment conference in Israel, Giuliani said Trump cancelled the summit because senior North Korean officials insulted top officials of the Trump administration.

The North Korean officials said they would wage a nuclear war with US and would defeat US in a war, he added.

He further said that the Trump administration refused to hold the summit under "such circumstances".

Giuliani said after Trump's refusal for the summit&nbsp;"Kim Jong-un got back on his hands and knees and begged for it, which is exactly the position you want to put him in", a media reported.

For a long time, Kim and Trump were hurling insults and threats of war with each other.

The rhetoric began to cool during the Winter Olympics in South Korea, and by mid-March, the two sides had agreed to a face-to-face.

After some back-and-forth, June 12 in Singapore has been scheduled for the meeting between the two leaders. 
&nbsp;

While speaking at an investment conference in Israel, Giuliani said Trump cancelled the summit because senior North Korean officials insulted top officials of the Trump administration

President Donald Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani has claimed that the North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un begged for the summit with US President Donald Trump after he cancelled it. He said the North Korean leader "got on his hands and knees and begged". While speaking at an investment conference in Israel, Giuliani said Trump cancelled the summit because senior North Korean officials insulted top officials of the Trump administration. The North Korean officials said they would wage a nuclear war with US and would defeat US in a war, he added. He further said that the Trump administration refused to hold the summit under "such circumstances". Giuliani said after Trump's refusal for the summit "Kim Jong-un got back on his hands and knees and begged for it, which is exactly the position you want to put him in", a media reported. For a long time, Kim and Trump were hurling insults and threats of war with each other. The rhetoric began to cool during the Winter Olympics in South Korea, and by mid-March, the two sides had agreed to a face-to-face. After some back-and-forth, June 12 in Singapore has been scheduled for the meeting between the two leaders.

Kim got on his hands, knees and begged Trump for the summit: Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani

Singapore has designated a central region of the wealthy city state as a "special event area" from June 10 to 14 for a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the government said on Monday.

The area comprising the districts of Tanglin, Newton and Orchard is where the foreign ministry, the U.S. embassy, and several large hotels are located, including the Shangri-La hotel, mentioned as a possible venue for the June 12 summit.

The announcement was made in the government's online gazette.

There will be a series of meetings between the two countries over the five days that include "lead-in activities" and social events connected with the summit, it added.

Police will make stricter checks of people and personal property and items such as public address systems and remotely piloted aircraft systems will be prohibited, the notice said.

There has been no confirmation of the venue for the summit to discuss ending the North's nuclear weapons programme in return for diplomatic and economic incentives, although several Singapore hotels have figured as candidates.

The area comprising the districts of Tanglin, Newton and Orchard is where the foreign ministry, the U.S. embassy, and several large hotels are located, including the Shangri-La hotel, mentioned as a possible venue for the June 12 summit

Singapore has designated a central region of the wealthy city state as a "special event area" from June 10 to 14 for a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the government said on Monday. The area comprising the districts of Tanglin, Newton and Orchard is where the foreign ministry, the U.S. embassy, and several large hotels are located, including the Shangri-La hotel, mentioned as a possible venue for the June 12 summit. The announcement was made in the government's online gazette. There will be a series of meetings between the two countries over the five days that include "lead-in activities" and social events connected with the summit, it added. Police will make stricter checks of people and personal property and items such as public address systems and remotely piloted aircraft systems will be prohibited, the notice said. There has been no confirmation of the venue for the summit to discuss ending the North's nuclear weapons programme in return for diplomatic and economic incentives, although several Singapore hotels have figured as candidates.

Singapore designates special zone for Trump-Kim summit

President Donald Trump, under pressure from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 U.S. election, probably has the power to pardon himself but does not plan to do so, his attorney Rudy Giuliani said on Sunday.

Asked whether Trump has the power to give himself a pardon, Giuliani said, "He's not, but he probably does." Giuliani added that Trump "has no intention of pardoning himself," but that the U.S. Constitution, which gives a president the authority to issue pardons, "doesn't say he can't."

Speaking on ABC's "This Week" program, Giuliani added, "It would be an open question. I think it would probably get answered by, gosh, that's what the Constitution says."

Mueller is investigating whether Russia meddled in the presidential election and whether Trump's campaign colluded with Moscow. Mueller, whose investigation already has led to criminal charges against Trump campaign aides including former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, is also looking into whether Trump unlawfully sought to obstruct the Russia investigation.

Both Russia and Trump deny collusion, and the president has denied obstructing the probe.

The possibility of Trump pardoning himself appeared to be raised in a Jan. 29 letter from his lawyers to Mueller, published by the New York Times on Saturday, arguing that the president could not have obstructed the probe given the powers granted to him by the Constitution.

"It remains our position that the President's actions here, by virtue of his position as the chief law enforcement officer, could neither constitutionally nor legally constitute obstruction because that would amount to him obstructing himself, and that he could, if he wished, terminate the inquiry, or even exercise his power to pardon if he so desired," Trump's lawyers wrote.

The letter did not explicitly describe the possibility of Trump pardoning himself.

A Trump decision to terminate the investigation "could lead to impeachment," Giuliani separately told the NBC News program "Meet the Press with Chuck Todd." Under the Constitution, a president can be impeached by the House of Representatives and then removed from office by the Senate.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, made clear that he did not think Trump or any other president should pardon himself. "I don't think a president should pardon themselves," he told CNN's "State of the Union."

Trump has not been shy about using his pardon power.

The president on Thursday pardoned conservative commentator and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty in 2014 to U.S. campaign finance law violations.

Trump also said he was considering pardoning lifestyle maven Martha Stewart and commuting the prison sentence of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, convicted of corruption charges. Critics accused Trump of subverting the rule of law.

Giuliani told ABC it is an "open question" whether Trump would sit for an interview with Mueller but that the president's lawyers were leaning against having him testify.

Giuliani also said the president's legal team planned to challenge any potential subpoena from the special counsel's office as harassment or as unnecessary because the White House has turned over more than a million documents and several witnesses.

Trump took to Twitter on Sunday to again rage against the FBI and Justice Department, saying he would not have hired Manafort if the agencies had told him Manafort was already under investigation.

"As only one of two people left who could become President, why wouldn't the FBI or Department of 'Justice' have told me that they were secretly investigating Paul Manafort (on charges that were 10 years old and had been previously dropped) during my campaign? Should have told me!" Trump tweeted.

"Paul Manafort came into the campaign very late and was with us for a short period of time ... but we should have been told that Comey and the boys were doing a number on him, and he wouldn't have been hired!" Trump wrote, referring to former FBI Director James Comey.

Trump's May 2017 firing of Comey led to Mueller's appointment as special counsel to oversee the federal investigation of Russian efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election and related matters.

The possibility of Trump pardoning himself appeared to be raised in a January 29 letter from his lawyers to Mueller, arguing that the president could not have obstructed the probe given the powers granted to him by the Constitution

President Donald Trump, under pressure from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 U.S. election, probably has the power to pardon himself but does not plan to do so, his attorney Rudy Giuliani said on Sunday. Asked whether Trump has the power to give himself a pardon, Giuliani said, "He's not, but he probably does." Giuliani added that Trump "has no intention of pardoning himself," but that the U.S. Constitution, which gives a president the authority to issue pardons, "doesn't say he can't." Speaking on ABC's "This Week" program, Giuliani added, "It would be an open question. I think it would probably get answered by, gosh, that's what the Constitution says." Mueller is investigating whether Russia meddled in the presidential election and whether Trump's campaign colluded with Moscow. Mueller, whose investigation already has led to criminal charges against Trump campaign aides including former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, is also looking into whether Trump unlawfully sought to obstruct the Russia investigation. Both Russia and Trump deny collusion, and the president has denied obstructing the probe. The possibility of Trump pardoning himself appeared to be raised in a Jan. 29 letter from his lawyers to Mueller, published by the New York Times on Saturday, arguing that the president could not have obstructed the probe given the powers granted to him by the Constitution. "It remains our position that the President's actions here, by virtue of his position as the chief law enforcement officer, could neither constitutionally nor legally constitute obstruction because that would amount to him obstructing himself, and that he could, if he wished, terminate the inquiry, or even exercise his power to pardon if he so desired," Trump's lawyers wrote. The letter did not explicitly describe the possibility of Trump pardoning himself. A Trump decision to terminate the investigation "could lead to impeachment," Giuliani separately told the NBC News program "Meet the Press with Chuck Todd." Under the Constitution, a president can be impeached by the House of Representatives and then removed from office by the Senate. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, made clear that he did not think Trump or any other president should pardon himself. "I don't think a president should pardon themselves," he told CNN's "State of the Union." Trump has not been shy about using his pardon power. The president on Thursday pardoned conservative commentator and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty in 2014 to U.S. campaign finance law violations. Trump also said he was considering pardoning lifestyle maven Martha Stewart and commuting the prison sentence of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, convicted of corruption charges. Critics accused Trump of subverting the rule of law. Giuliani told ABC it is an "open question" whether Trump would sit for an interview with Mueller but that the president's lawyers were leaning against having him testify. Giuliani also said the president's legal team planned to challenge any potential subpoena from the special counsel's office as harassment or as unnecessary because the White House has turned over more than a million documents and several witnesses. Trump took to Twitter on Sunday to again rage against the FBI and Justice Department, saying he would not have hired Manafort if the agencies had told him Manafort was already under investigation. "As only one of two people left who could become President, why wouldn't the FBI or Department of 'Justice' have told me that they were secretly investigating Paul Manafort (on charges that were 10 years old and had been previously dropped) during my campaign? Should have told me!" Trump tweeted. "Paul Manafort came into the campaign very late and was with us for a short period of time ... but we should have been told that Comey and the boys were doing a number on him, and he wouldn't have been hired!" Trump wrote, referring to former FBI Director James Comey. Trump's May 2017 firing of Comey led to Mueller's appointment as special counsel to oversee the federal investigation of Russian efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election and related matters.

Trump can probably pardon himself, but has no plan to: Giuliani

<a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/day-after-countrys-farmers-go-on-strike-fruit--vegetable-prices-shoot-up-141779">Day</a><a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/day-after-countrys-farmers-go-on-strike-fruit--vegetable-prices-shoot-up-141779"> after country's farmers go on strike, fruit & vegetable prices shoot up</a>

A day after farmers in the country went on&nbsp<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/farmers-begin-10-day-nationwide-strike-say-will-not-sell-produce-in-cities-141609">strike</a>, the prices of fruits and vegetables have reportedly shot up.&nbspANI reported vendors at Delhi's Okhla mandi as saying prices had risen.

<a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-to-address-farmers-protest-on-june-6-in-mandsaur-mp-141801">Rahul Gandhi to address farmers' protest on June 6 in Mandsaur, MP</a>

A day after farmers across the country initiated a 10-day nationwide protest,&nbspCongress president Rahul Gandhi has decided to join the protest on June 6.

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/trump-says-summit-back-on-but-who-will-pay-for-kims-hotel-room-141802">Trump says summit back on but who will pay for Kim's hotel room?&nbsp</a>

Trump announced early Saturday morning that his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un was back on.&nbsp He made his announcement after meeting at the White House with Kim's right-hand man Kim Yong Chol.&nbsp

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/palestinian-tries-to-hit-israeli-soldiers-with-car-shot-dead-army-141790">Palestinian tries to hit Israeli soldiers with </a><a href="http://wionews.com/world/palestinian-tries-to-hit-israeli-soldiers-with-car-shot-dead-army-141790">car</a><a href="http://wionews.com/world/palestinian-tries-to-hit-israeli-soldiers-with-car-shot-dead-army-141790">,</a><a href="http://wionews.com/world/palestinian-tries-to-hit-israeli-soldiers-with-car-shot-dead-army-141790"> shot dead: Army</a>

A Palestinian man who tried today to hit Israeli soldiers with his car in the southern occupied West Bank city Hebron was shot dead, the army said.

<a href="http://wionews.com/south-asia/un-and-myanmar-agree-outline-of-rohingya-return-deal-no-details-141556">UN and Myanmar agree outline of Rohingya return deal, no details</a>

The United Nations said&nbspon Thursday&nbspit had struck an outline deal with Myanmar aimed at eventually allowing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims sheltering in Bangladesh to return safely and by choice.

&nbsp

Day after country's farmers go on strike, fruit & vegetable prices shoot up A day after farmers in the country went on strike, the prices of fruits and vegetables have reportedly shot up.&nbspANI reported vendors at Delhi's Okhla mandi as saying prices had risen. Rahul Gandhi to address farmers' protest on June 6 in Mandsaur, MP A day after farmers across the country initiated a 10-day nationwide protest,&nbspCongress president Rahul Gandhi has decided to join the protest on June 6. Trump says summit back on but who will pay for Kim's hotel room? Trump announced early Saturday morning that his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un was back on. He made his announcement after meeting at the White House with Kim's right-hand man Kim Yong Chol. Palestinian tries to hit Israeli soldiers with car, shot dead: Army A Palestinian man who tried today to hit Israeli soldiers with his car in the southern occupied West Bank city Hebron was shot dead, the army said. UN and Myanmar agree outline of Rohingya return deal, no details The United Nations said&nbspon Thursday&nbspit had struck an outline deal with Myanmar aimed at eventually allowing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims sheltering in Bangladesh to return safely and by choice.

Saying he was treated "very unfairly," President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will pardon conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty four years ago to violating US campaign financing laws.

"Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D'Souza today," Trump tweeted. "He was treated very unfairly by our government!"

D'Souza, 57, a caustic critic of former president Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, was fined $30,000 and sentenced in September 2014 to five years of probation for illegal campaign contributions.

The Republican pundit pleaded guilty to attempting to donate $20,000 to a Senate campaign through straw donors by offering to reimburse associates who sent in the money.

D'Souza also personally contributed $10,000 to the campaign of Republican Wendy Long, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in New York in 2012.

At the time, the legal limit for an individual to contribution was $5,000.

Then-US attorney Preet Bharara accused D'Souza following his sentencing of "wilfully undermining the integrity of the campaign finance process."

D'Souza is a best-selling author of several books on politics and the influence of religion on American society.

His films "2016: Obama's America" and "Hillary's America" were popular with conservative groups.

Before pleading guilty, D'Souza insisted on his innocence and claimed he was targeted for federal prosecution because of his anti-Obama views.

Federal judge Richard Berman dismissed the bias claims as completely unfounded.

"The defendant's claim of selective prosecution, legally speaking, is all hat, no cattle," he said.

D'Souza, 57, a caustic critic of former president Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, was fined $30,000 and sentenced in September 2014 to five years of probation for illegal campaign contributions

Saying he was treated "very unfairly," President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will pardon conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty four years ago to violating US campaign financing laws. "Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D'Souza today," Trump tweeted. "He was treated very unfairly by our government!" D'Souza, 57, a caustic critic of former president Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, was fined $30,000 and sentenced in September 2014 to five years of probation for illegal campaign contributions. The Republican pundit pleaded guilty to attempting to donate $20,000 to a Senate campaign through straw donors by offering to reimburse associates who sent in the money. D'Souza also personally contributed $10,000 to the campaign of Republican Wendy Long, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in New York in 2012. At the time, the legal limit for an individual to contribution was $5,000. Then-US attorney Preet Bharara accused D'Souza following his sentencing of "wilfully undermining the integrity of the campaign finance process." D'Souza is a best-selling author of several books on politics and the influence of religion on American society. His films "2016: Obama's America" and "Hillary's America" were popular with conservative groups. Before pleading guilty, D'Souza insisted on his innocence and claimed he was targeted for federal prosecution because of his anti-Obama views. Federal judge Richard Berman dismissed the bias claims as completely unfounded. "The defendant's claim of selective prosecution, legally speaking, is all hat, no cattle," he said.

Trump says he will pardon conservative firebrand Dinesh D'Souza

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he was expecting to receive a message from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, as the two sides scramble to revive a summit previously set for next month between the two leaders.

"I look forward to seeing what's in the letter. They will probably be coming to Washington DC on Friday to deliver the letter so I look forward to that," Trump said before heading to Texas for the day.

He also said that meetings in New York between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and top North Korean official Kim Yong Chol, which resumed early Thursday, were going "very well."

There were reports earlier on Wednesday that South&nbspKorean officials were noting "quite significant" differences between the United States and&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspover denuclearization.

The New York meetings follow high-level conversations Pompeo held in&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspin April and earlier in May and are intended to get negotiations between the two long-time adversaries back on track.

The United States has been demanding that&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspabandon its nuclear weapons programme amid reports that it is close to being able to launch a nuclear-tipped missile capable of reaching the United States.

He also said that meetings in New York between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and top North Korean official Kim Yong Chol, which resumed early Thursday, were going very well

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he was expecting to receive a message from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, as the two sides scramble to revive a summit previously set for next month between the two leaders. "I look forward to seeing what's in the letter. They will probably be coming to Washington DC on Friday to deliver the letter so I look forward to that," Trump said before heading to Texas for the day. He also said that meetings in New York between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and top North Korean official Kim Yong Chol, which resumed early Thursday, were going "very well." There were reports earlier on Wednesday that South&nbspKorean officials were noting "quite significant" differences between the United States and&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspover denuclearization. The New York meetings follow high-level conversations Pompeo held in&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspin April and earlier in May and are intended to get negotiations between the two long-time adversaries back on track. The United States has been demanding that&nbspNorth&nbspKorea&nbspabandon its nuclear weapons programme amid reports that it is close to being able to launch a nuclear-tipped missile capable of reaching the United States.

Trump says expecting letter from Kim Jong Un ahead of summit

US President Donald Trump announced that a senior North Korean official is headed to New York to discuss an upcoming summit,&nbsp;the latest indication that an on-again-off-again meeting between Trump and North Korea's leader may go ahead next month.

Kim Yong Chol, 72, will be the most senior North Korean official to meet top officials for talks in the United States since Jo Myong Rok, a marshal, met then-President Bill Clinton at the White House in 2000.

Kim Jong Chol has often be described as Supreme leader Kin Jong Un's "right-hand man" and also coordinated the North Korean president's two meetings with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in April and May. He and Kim Jong Un's sister were the only North Korean officials to attend the first inter-Korean summit in April alongside the North Korean leader.

<img alt="128.PNG" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" height="390" src="http://images.wionews.com/iniline-images/128.PNG" width="697" />

He was also&nbsp;among a small and select group of North Korean officials who&nbsp;accompanied Kim Jong Un&nbsp;to the Demilitarized Zone dividing the Korean peninsula&nbsp;to meet twice&nbsp;with South Korean President Moon Jae In.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently informed that Kim would be meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York, making him the highest-ranking North Korean official to visit the US since 2000 when Jo Myong Rok, the late vice marshal, met with then-President Bill Clinton in Washington.

Kim has previously been a liaison officer with the United Nations, a border guard in the Korean demilitarised zone and was also a part of the team which carried out the breakthrough negotiations with the South Koreans in the early 1990s. Over the past decade, he was promoted to four-star general and made the head of the main North Korean intelligence service, known as the reconnaissance general bureau (RGB).

He is the current vice-chairman of the ruling Worker's party and was also one of the delegations from North Korea for the Winter Olympics closing ceremony.&nbsp;

He later served as the director of the General Reconnaissance Bureau, tasked with cyber-warfare and gathering foreign intelligence, from 2009 to 2016.

During his time as North Korea's military intelligence chief, Kim was accused of being responsible for the attacks on the South Korea warship Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island in 2010 in which 46 sailors had died.

He also allegedly had a hand in North Korea’s deadly shelling of South Korea’s Yeonpyeong Island six months later.

He is also linked to the cyber-attack on Sony Pictures in 2014 and led the country's delegation to the 2018 Winter Olympics closing ceremony in South Korea's Pyeongchang earlier this year.

The United States and South Korea blacklisted Kim Yong Chol for supporting the North's nuclear and missile programmes in 2010 and 2016, respectively, so a visit to the United States would indicate the US&nbsp;government has granted him a waiver.

North Korea denied any involvement in both attacks.

Kim Yong Chol, 72, will be the most senior North Korean official to meet top officials for talks in the United States since Jo Myong Rok, a marshal, met then-President Bill Clinton at the White House in 2000

US President Donald Trump announced that a senior North Korean official is headed to New York to discuss an upcoming summit, the latest indication that an on-again-off-again meeting between Trump and North Korea's leader may go ahead next month. Kim Yong Chol, 72, will be the most senior North Korean official to meet top officials for talks in the United States since Jo Myong Rok, a marshal, met then-President Bill Clinton at the White House in 2000. Kim Jong Chol has often be described as Supreme leader Kin Jong Un's "right-hand man" and also coordinated the North Korean president's two meetings with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in April and May. He and Kim Jong Un's sister were the only North Korean officials to attend the first inter-Korean summit in April alongside the North Korean leader. He was also among a small and select group of North Korean officials who accompanied Kim Jong Un to the Demilitarized Zone dividing the Korean peninsula to meet twice with South Korean President Moon Jae In. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently informed that Kim would be meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York, making him the highest-ranking North Korean official to visit the US since 2000 when Jo Myong Rok, the late vice marshal, met with then-President Bill Clinton in Washington. Kim has previously been a liaison officer with the United Nations, a border guard in the Korean demilitarised zone and was also a part of the team which carried out the breakthrough negotiations with the South Koreans in the early 1990s. Over the past decade, he was promoted to four-star general and made the head of the main North Korean intelligence service, known as the reconnaissance general bureau (RGB). He is the current vice-chairman of the ruling Worker's party and was also one of the delegations from North Korea for the Winter Olympics closing ceremony. He later served as the director of the General Reconnaissance Bureau, tasked with cyber-warfare and gathering foreign intelligence, from 2009 to 2016. During his time as North Korea's military intelligence chief, Kim was accused of being responsible for the attacks on the South Korea warship Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island in 2010 in which 46 sailors had died. He also allegedly had a hand in North Korea’s deadly shelling of South Korea’s Yeonpyeong Island six months later. He is also linked to the cyber-attack on Sony Pictures in 2014 and led the country's delegation to the 2018 Winter Olympics closing ceremony in South Korea's Pyeongchang earlier this year. The United States and South Korea blacklisted Kim Yong Chol for supporting the North's nuclear and missile programmes in 2010 and 2016, respectively, so a visit to the United States would indicate the US government has granted him a waiver. North Korea denied any involvement in both attacks.

Kim Yong Chol: North Korean leader's right-hand man and ex-spy chief

The United States has decided to cut short the length of validity of visas issued o Chinese citizens as part of a strategy to prevent intellectual property theft by US rivals, a White House official said on Tuesday.

The decision will be made on a case-by-case basis although the visa process remains the same, reports said.&nbsp;

The US State Department will implement measures from June 11 to “enhance security for some Chinese visa applicants,” the official said.

Reports further said that the maximum validity for Chinese student visas would remain the same, five years, but that consular officials have the authority to put an earlier expiration date on some visas.

A US official has said that Chinese graduate students would be limited to one-year visas if they are studying in certain fields, such as robotics, aviation and high-tech manufacturing.

The change would come as President Donald Trump’s administration attempts to crack down on what it says is theft of US intellectual property by China.

“Going forward, a reduction in the validity of some newly issued visas is part of the National Security Strategy to ensure that intellectual property is not transferred to our competitors,” the official said, referring to a document issued by the Trump administration in December.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/chinas-state-media-slam-us-trade-announcement-say-beijing-ready-to-fight-140836">China's state media slam US trade announcement, say Beijing ready to fight</a>

The official said the instructions also stated that Chinese citizens seeking visas would need special clearance from multiple US agencies if they work as researchers or managers for companies on a US Commerce Department list of entities needing higher scrutiny. Those clearances are expected to take months for each application, AP cited the official as saying.

Earlier on Tuesday, Washington said it was still considering slapping 25 per cent tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese goods in retaliation for what the Trump administration says are China’s unfair trade practices.

The US State Department will implement measures from June 11 to 'enhance security for some Chinese visa applicants,' the official said

The United States has decided to cut short the length of validity of visas issued o Chinese citizens as part of a strategy to prevent intellectual property theft by US rivals, a White House official said on Tuesday. The decision will be made on a case-by-case basis although the visa process remains the same, reports said. The US State Department will implement measures from June 11 to “enhance security for some Chinese visa applicants,” the official said. Reports further said that the maximum validity for Chinese student visas would remain the same, five years, but that consular officials have the authority to put an earlier expiration date on some visas. A US official has said that Chinese graduate students would be limited to one-year visas if they are studying in certain fields, such as robotics, aviation and high-tech manufacturing. The change would come as President Donald Trump’s administration attempts to crack down on what it says is theft of US intellectual property by China. “Going forward, a reduction in the validity of some newly issued visas is part of the National Security Strategy to ensure that intellectual property is not transferred to our competitors,” the official said, referring to a document issued by the Trump administration in December. Also read: China's state media slam US trade announcement, say Beijing ready to fight The official said the instructions also stated that Chinese citizens seeking visas would need special clearance from multiple US agencies if they work as researchers or managers for companies on a US Commerce Department list of entities needing higher scrutiny. Those clearances are expected to take months for each application, AP cited the official as saying. Earlier on Tuesday, Washington said it was still considering slapping 25 per cent tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese goods in retaliation for what the Trump administration says are China’s unfair trade practices.

US to shorten length of visas for some Chinese citizens: White House

A senior North Korean official is headed to New York to discuss an upcoming summit, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday, the latest indication that an on-again-off-again meeting between Trump and North Korea's leader may go ahead next month.

"We have put a great team together for our talks with North Korea," Trump said in a Twitter post. "Meetings are currently taking place concerning Summit, and more. Kim Young (sic) Chol, the Vice Chairman of North Korea, heading now to New York. Solid response to my letter, thank you!"

Kim Yong Chol, vice chairman of the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee and formerly head of a top North Korean military intelligence agency, was scheduled to fly to the United States on Wednesday after speaking to Chinese officials in Beijing, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said, citing an unidentified source.

The talks indicate that planning for the unprecedented summit, initially scheduled for June 12, is moving ahead after Trump called it off last week in a letter to the North's leader, Kim Jong Un.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://wionews.com/world/trump-says-meetings-taking-place-on-us-north-korea-summit-140683">Trump says meetings taking place on US-North Korea summit</a>

A day later, Trump, who frequently exchanged insults with Kim Jong Un before they began talking about a summit, said he had reconsidered and officials from both countries were meeting to work out details.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
We have put a great team together for our talks with North Korea. Meetings are currently taking place concerning Summit, and more. Kim Young Chol, the Vice Chairman of North Korea, heading now to New York. Solid response to my letter, thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1001410457092218880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 29, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Kim Yong Chol will be the most senior North Korean official to meet top officials for talks in the United States since Jo Myong Rok, a marshal, met then-President Bill Clinton at the White House in 2000.

Kim Yong Chol coordinated the North Korean president's two meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in April and May. He and Kim Jong Un's sister were the only North Korean officials to attend the first inter-Korean summit in April alongside the North Korean leader.

Analysts believe the United States is trying to determine whether North Korea is willing to agree to sufficient steps toward getting rid of its nuclear weapons to allow a summit to take place.

Kellyanne Conway, a top adviser to Trump, told Fox News a summit might not take place on the date originally set but perhaps shortly after.

<img alt="Untitled design (2)_3.jpg" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" height="450" src="http://images.wionews.com/iniline-images/Untitled%20design%20(2)_3.jpg" width="770" />

North Korean leader Kim's de facto chief of staff, Kim Chang Son, meanwhile, flew to Singapore, the scheduled site of the meeting, via Beijing late on Monday, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported.

At the same time, a "pre-advance" U.S. team was in Singapore to meet North Koreans.

North Korea has faced years of isolation and economic sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes since it conducted its first nuclear test in 2006.

But events have moved quickly since Kim Jong Un made a conciliatory New Year’s address at the end of last year, following months of sharply rising tension and war-like rhetoric between Trump and Kim.

Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting on Saturday at the border village of Panmunjom, during which they agreed the North Korea-U.S. summit must be held.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://wionews.com/world/south-korean-president-moon-jae-in-may-attend-us-north-korea-summit-report-140328">South Korean president Moon Jae-in may attend US-North Korea summit: Report</a>

On Sunday, the U.S. State Department said American and North Korean officials had met at Panmunjom. Sung Kim, the former U.S. ambassador to South Korea and current ambassador to the Philippines, led the U.S. delegation, an official told Reuters.

Sung Kim will meet North Korean Foreign Ministry official Choi Sun Hee again&nbsp;on Wednesday on the border, Yonhap reported, citing a diplomatic source, adding that the agenda for the Trump-Kim summit would be roughly worked out.

While likely substantive, those discussions could be upstaged by any talks between Kim Yong Chol and officials in the United States, said Evans Revere, a former senior diplomat who dealt with North Korea under U.S. President George W. Bush.

The future of North Korea's nuclear programme, which has been a source of international tension for decades, U.S. security guarantees and coordination for a Trump-Kim summit are likely to be at the top of the agenda, analysts said.

In Kim Jong Un and Moon's first meeting on April 27, they agreed to seek the "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean peninsula but did not define what that meant or how that would proceed.

Since then, North Korea has rejected U.S. demands for it to unilaterally abandon its nuclear programme, which experts say could threaten the United States.

North Korea also demanded the United States stop military exercises with South Korea, the North's Rodong Sinmun newspaper said.

South Korea's Defence Ministry said it did not have plans to change exercise schedules with the U.S. military.

North Korea defends its nuclear and missile programmes as a deterrent against what it sees as U.S. aggression. The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.

The United States and South Korea blacklisted Kim Yong Chol

for supporting the North's nuclear and missile programmes in 2010 and 2016, respectively, so a visit to the United States would indicate the U.S. government has granted him a waiver.

During his tenure as a senior intelligence official, Kim was accused by South Korea of masterminding deadly attacks on a South Korean navy ship and an island in 2010. He was linked by U.S intelligence to a cyber attack on Sony Pictures in 2014.

North Korea denied any involvement in both attacks.

The talks indicate that planning for the unprecedented summit, initially scheduled for June 12, is moving ahead after Trump called it off last week in a letter to the North's leader, Kim Jong Un

A senior North Korean official is headed to New York to discuss an upcoming summit, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday, the latest indication that an on-again-off-again meeting between Trump and North Korea's leader may go ahead next month. "We have put a great team together for our talks with North Korea," Trump said in a Twitter post. "Meetings are currently taking place concerning Summit, and more. Kim Young (sic) Chol, the Vice Chairman of North Korea, heading now to New York. Solid response to my letter, thank you!" Kim Yong Chol, vice chairman of the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee and formerly head of a top North Korean military intelligence agency, was scheduled to fly to the United States on Wednesday after speaking to Chinese officials in Beijing, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said, citing an unidentified source. The talks indicate that planning for the unprecedented summit, initially scheduled for June 12, is moving ahead after Trump called it off last week in a letter to the North's leader, Kim Jong Un. Also read: Trump says meetings taking place on US-North Korea summit A day later, Trump, who frequently exchanged insults with Kim Jong Un before they began talking about a summit, said he had reconsidered and officials from both countries were meeting to work out details. We have put a great team together for our talks with North Korea. Meetings are currently taking place concerning Summit, and more. Kim Young Chol, the Vice Chairman of North Korea, heading now to New York. Solid response to my letter, thank you! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2018 × Kim Yong Chol will be the most senior North Korean official to meet top officials for talks in the United States since Jo Myong Rok, a marshal, met then-President Bill Clinton at the White House in 2000. Kim Yong Chol coordinated the North Korean president's two meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in April and May. He and Kim Jong Un's sister were the only North Korean officials to attend the first inter-Korean summit in April alongside the North Korean leader. Analysts believe the United States is trying to determine whether North Korea is willing to agree to sufficient steps toward getting rid of its nuclear weapons to allow a summit to take place. Kellyanne Conway, a top adviser to Trump, told Fox News a summit might not take place on the date originally set but perhaps shortly after. North Korean leader Kim's de facto chief of staff, Kim Chang Son, meanwhile, flew to Singapore, the scheduled site of the meeting, via Beijing late on Monday, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported. At the same time, a "pre-advance" U.S. team was in Singapore to meet North Koreans. North Korea has faced years of isolation and economic sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes since it conducted its first nuclear test in 2006. But events have moved quickly since Kim Jong Un made a conciliatory New Year’s address at the end of last year, following months of sharply rising tension and war-like rhetoric between Trump and Kim. Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting on Saturday at the border village of Panmunjom, during which they agreed the North Korea-U.S. summit must be held. Also read: South Korean president Moon Jae-in may attend US-North Korea summit: Report On Sunday, the U.S. State Department said American and North Korean officials had met at Panmunjom. Sung Kim, the former U.S. ambassador to South Korea and current ambassador to the Philippines, led the U.S. delegation, an official told Reuters. Sung Kim will meet North Korean Foreign Ministry official Choi Sun Hee again on Wednesday on the border, Yonhap reported, citing a diplomatic source, adding that the agenda for the Trump-Kim summit would be roughly worked out. While likely substantive, those discussions could be upstaged by any talks between Kim Yong Chol and officials in the United States, said Evans Revere, a former senior diplomat who dealt with North Korea under U.S. President George W. Bush. The future of North Korea's nuclear programme, which has been a source of international tension for decades, U.S. security guarantees and coordination for a Trump-Kim summit are likely to be at the top of the agenda, analysts said. In Kim Jong Un and Moon's first meeting on April 27, they agreed to seek the "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean peninsula but did not define what that meant or how that would proceed. Since then, North Korea has rejected U.S. demands for it to unilaterally abandon its nuclear programme, which experts say could threaten the United States. North Korea also demanded the United States stop military exercises with South Korea, the North's Rodong Sinmun newspaper said. South Korea's Defence Ministry said it did not have plans to change exercise schedules with the U.S. military. North Korea defends its nuclear and missile programmes as a deterrent against what it sees as U.S. aggression. The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War. The United States and South Korea blacklisted Kim Yong Chol for supporting the North's nuclear and missile programmes in 2010 and 2016, respectively, so a visit to the United States would indicate the U.S. government has granted him a waiver. During his tenure as a senior intelligence official, Kim was accused by South Korea of masterminding deadly attacks on a South Korean navy ship and an island in 2010. He was linked by U.S intelligence to a cyber attack on Sony Pictures in 2014. North Korea denied any involvement in both attacks.

Most senior North Korean envoy to hold official talks in US in 18 years

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