Donald Trump: Would be surprised if Pyongyang acted hostilely and interfered in US elections
President Donald Trump said he would be surprised if Pyongyang acted in a hostile manner and insisted he did not think Kim Jong-un wanted to interfere in next year's US election.
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| US President Donald Trump (right) and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the historic summit in Singapore, June 12, 2018. Photo: AFP/TTXVN |
Reuters reported that President Donald Trump affirmed on December 7 that he did not think North Korean leader Kim Jong-un wanted to interfere in next year's US election, and that he would be surprised if Pyongyang acted in a hostile manner.
Speaking to reporters after North Korea's UN Ambassador Kim Song announced earlier in the day that denuclearization was off the negotiating table with the US, Mr. Trump said: "We'll be watching North Korea. I would be surprised if North Korea acted in a hostile manner."
"He (leader Kim Jong-un) knows I have an election coming up. I don't think he wants to interfere, but we'll have to see... I think he wants to see something happen. The relationship is very good, but there's still a little bit of hostility, no doubt about that," Trump added.
Earlier, while attending a summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the UK on December 3, Mr. Trump said that Washington could use force if it had to do so, while urging North Korea and leader Kim Jong-un to respect the denuclearization agreement.
Immediately afterwards, North Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui said that these statements by US President Donald Trump implying the use of military force against Pyongyang would be a "very dangerous challenge".
In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Choe Son-hui warned that Pyongyang could resume "tit-for-tat" retaliation against the US if such statements were repeated.
