North Korean leader Kim Jong Un yesterday thanked Singapore for hosting the historic summit between him and US President Donald Trump tomorrow.
Shortly after arriving in Singapore in the afternoon yesterday, Kim, who is chairman of the State Affairs Commission in North Korea, the nation’s highest decision-making body, met Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for the first- time.
The two leaders exchanged broad smiles and warm thank-yous when they met at the Istana.
“The entire world is focusing on the historic summit between the DPRK and the US, and thanks to your sincere efforts… we were able to complete the preparations for the historic summit,” Kim told Lee through an interpreter. “And I would like to thank you for that.”
DPRK refers to the North’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
He added that Singapore’s efforts to host the summit would go down in history if the meeting was successful.
Lee, for his part, thanked Kim for coming to Singapore, the farthest the North Korean leader has travelled out of his country since assuming power in 2011.
“Thank you for also asking to hold the summit in Singapore,” added Lee.
Singapore has been following developments on the Korean peninsula closely for a very long time, the Prime Minister told the North Korean leader.
“We have watched the struggles, and the sacrifices and the progress of the people,” he said.