WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 (Xinhua/GNA) – U.S.
President Donald Trump said here on Monday that he would “most
likely” meet with the top leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea (DPRK), Kim Jong Un.
Speaking with Reuters in an interview at the
White House, Trump said it would be “likely”. “It’s most likely
we will, but I just don’t want to comment,” Trump said, offering no
details on the timing or venue. He also said that he believes Pyongyang had
taken specific steps toward denuclearization.
He added that he has “great chemistry” with Kim. “I like him. He likes me,” he said.
“There’s no ballistic missiles going up, there’s a lot of silence … I
have very good personal relations with Chairman Kim, and I think that’s what
holds it together.”
As U.S.-Turkey diplomatic deadlock lingered
over an American pastor, Trump ruled out any possibility of concessions with
Turkey over the case, and said he was not concerned at all that his tough
stance on Turkey could hurt other economies. “I think it’s very sad what
Turkey is doing. I think they’re making a terrible mistake. There will be no
concessions,” he said in the interview.
Trump said he thought he had a deal with Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan to release Andrew Brunson after he had convinced Israel to free a
detained Turkish citizen. “Until
now I had a very good relationship as you know with the president. I got along
with him great. I had a very good relationship. But it can’t be a one-way street.
It’s no longer a one-way street for the United States,” said Trump.
Reuters quoted a U.S. senior official that Trump and Erdogan had met in
Brussels in mid-July when they discussed how to solve Brunson’s case, as
“Turkey had sought U.S. help to persuade the Israelis to release a Turkish
woman who was being held in Israel.”
When asked about the potential damage of U.S. actions to other
economies, the White House host said that “I’m not concerned at all. I’m
not concerned. This is the proper thing to do.”
Andrew Brunson, a 50-year-old Christian pastor,
was detained two years ago in Turkey on spying charges, and would face up to 35
years in prison if found guilty. The
U.S. Department of the Treasury slapped sanctions on Turkey’s justice and
interior ministers on Aug. 1, citing their roles in the detention of
Brunson.
Trump tweeted on Aug. 10 that
he has authorized a doubling of tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminum imports
as their currency Lira slides rapidly downward against the U.S. dollar.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu
said in response that problems with the United States over a series of
differences can be solved easily but not with its current mindset. Cavusoglu also said that Turkey has done its
part in terms of preserving friendly relations with the United States, and once
again accused Washington of supporting terrorist groups targeting Turkey.
In the interview, Trump also indicated that he
would consider lifting U.S. sanctions on Russia if Moscow took some actions in
such areas as Syria or Ukraine.
“I
would consider it if they do something that would be good for us. But I
wouldn’t consider it without that,” he said without mentioning the U.S.
threat to sanction Russia in two phases, which has drawn bitter criticism from
Moscow.
Trump has been widely attacked
after his Helsinki meeting with Putin, due to his reconciliatory remarks that
many saw as a sign of siding with Moscow against the U.S. intelligence
community’s conclusion that Russia meddled in the 2016 U.S. elections. The White House has said that the next
meeting between Trump and Putin will be delayed until next year.
Turning to Iran, Trump said it did not matter
to him whether he met Iran’s leaders and there had been no U.S. outreach toward
Iran to discuss possible talks. “If
they want to meet, fine.
If they don’t want to meet, I couldn’t care
less,” he said. The first round of
U.S. re-imposed sanctions on Iran took effect earlier this month. Iran’s
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that any negotiation with the United
States to solve the existing problems was an “obvious mistake.”
“I have reiterated that we can not rely
on American words and even their signature, therefore, negotiations with them
are fruitless,” he said. Trump also
said in the interview that “I’m constantly reviewing Afghanistan and the
whole Middle East. We never should have been in the Middle East. It was the
single greatest mistake in the history of our country.”
GNA