White House leaves door open for renewed talks with North Korea

US President Donald Trump remains open to communication with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the White House said on June 11, expressing a willingness to resume dialogue despite no indication from Pyongyang that Kim is seeking renewed engagement.

“The President remains receptive to correspondence with Kim Jong Un and he’d like to see the progress that was made at that summit in Singapore,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, responding to a media report that claimed Trump had attempted to send a letter to the North Korean leader, Caliber.Az reports via Bloomberg.

The call for renewed talks comes as South Korea, a key US ally, seeks to de-escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula following the recent inauguration of liberal President Lee Jae-myung. In a notable conciliatory gesture during his first week in office, Seoul suspended the use of loudspeakers broadcasting anti-regime messages across the border with North Korea.

Trump has frequently highlighted what he described as positive relations with Kim since his presidential campaign, though North Korea has maintained a skeptical stance. Kim has previously stated that past negotiations with Washington only reaffirmed what he called the US’s “unchangeable” hostility toward his regime.

The diplomatic landscape in the region has shifted significantly since the last Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi in 2019. Kim has since emerged as a more assertive figure, deepening ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid Moscow’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, concerns over North Korea’s nuclear ambitions continue to grow. The International Atomic Energy Agency and weapons experts reported this week that Pyongyang may have constructed a new uranium enrichment facility at its main Yongbyon nuclear site, potentially expanding its capacity to produce nuclear weapons. Kim has pledged to enhance the country’s nuclear arsenal “without limit,” citing what he described as increasing threats from the United States and its regional allies.

By Sabina Mammadli