White House says Trump open to talks with Kim "without any preconditions"

President Donald Trump remains willing to engage in dialogue with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un “without any preconditions,” the White House said after Kim signalled Pyongyang could return to talks if the United States drops what it calls a “hostile” policy.

“President Trump, in his first term, held three historic summits with North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un that stabilised the Korean Peninsula,” South Korean media quotes White House official as saying.

“U.S. policy on North Korea has not changed. President Trump remains open to talking with Kim Jong-un without any preconditions.”

The statement followed remarks by Kim during a recent congress of the ruling Workers’ Party, where he said Pyongyang has “no reason not to get along with the U.S.” if Washington withdraws its hostile approach. According to North Korean state media, Kim stressed that the future of bilateral relations “entirely depends on the U.S. attitude.”

Trump and Kim met three times during Trump’s first term — in Singapore in June 2018, in Hanoi in February 2019, and at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom in June 2019. The meetings marked an unprecedented chapter in relations between Washington and Pyongyang, though they did not produce a lasting agreement on denuclearisation.

Kim’s latest comments have fuelled speculation that diplomacy could resume, particularly as Trump is expected to visit China from late next month to early April. However, no concrete steps toward renewed working-level talks have been announced.

In Washington this week, South Korea’s top nuclear envoy, Jeong Yeon-doo, said he had received assurances that the U.S. position remains unchanged.

“I have confirmed (during my trip here) that there is no change in the U.S.' stance that it is open to dialogue with North Korea without preconditions,” Jeong told South Korean reporters.

Jeong added that Seoul would continue to act as a “pacemaker” in efforts to revive engagement. He said that during meetings with U.S. officials, he explained that South Korea “will continue to support efforts to resume dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang, and seek to reduce inter-Korean tensions and build trust with the North ‘with a long-term perspective.’”

During his first summit with Trump in August, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung pledged that South Korea would work as a “pacemaker” to help Trump play a role as a “peacemaker.”

Still, a senior Seoul official said there appears to be no new development in terms of working-level engagement between the United States and North Korea that could pave the way for renewed bilateral dialogue.

For now, both sides appear to be keeping the door open — but without clear signs that negotiations are imminent.

By Aghakazim Guliyev