Wednesday on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo predicted North Korea under dictator Kim Jong-un would ultimately denuclearize.
Pompeo’s remarks were made on the heels of the Trump administration’s announcement President Donald Trump would meet with Kim Jong-un once again.
Partial transcript as follows:
BARTIROMO: The president breaking some news last night about this new meeting that he’s got on the books with Kim Jong-un. You’re among the few people that has been there meeting with Kim Jong-un.
What should we expect in terms of a breakthrough from this upcoming summit?
POMPEO: Well, this is a real opportunity for the world. I have a team on the ground in Pyongyang even as we speak beginning to lay those foundations for the — the meetings that will happen at the end of this month. We are very hopeful that Chairman Kim will fulfill his commitment, the one that he made back in June in Singapore, to denuclearize his country. It’s in the best interest of the North Korean people. Certainly in the best interest to keep American’s safe as well. That’s the president’s mission. And that’s what we’ll seek to advance when we travel to Vietnam in a couple weeks.
BARTIROMO: And that’s — and that’s the main thing — the main point. I mean the president seems to rely so much on personal diplomacy. My relationship with Kim Jong-un, he says a lot. And yet there seems to be this stalemate when it comes to exactly what you just said, the most important issue.
Do you believe it is still possible for North Korea to denuclearize?
POMPEO: Oh, of course — of course I do. We’ve seen it. We’ve seen it in the discussions. Chairman Kim has told his own people that they need to turn the course, they need to advance their economic conditions inside of their country. Those were his words, not mine. I think there’s every opportunity that Chairman Km will move on to fulfill the commitments that he made and then we’ll, in turn, fulfill the commitments we made towards stability on the peninsula and a better future, a brighter future for the North Korean people.
Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor
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