Trump: I ‘have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un’

President Trump said in a new interview Thursday that he “probably” has a “very good relationship” with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a day after expressing his willingness to enter talks with the country over its nuclear program.

“I probably have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un,” Trump said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. “I have relationships with people. I think you people are surprised.”

When Trump was asked if he has spoken with Kim, Trump said he didn’t want to comment.

{mosads}“I’m not saying I have or haven’t,” Trump said. “I just don’t want to comment.”

Trump also told The Journal that his tweets on North Korea, in which he’s dubbed Kim as “Little Rocket Man” and labeled him a “maniac,” are part of a larger strategy.

“You’ll see that a lot with me,” Trump said about his fiery tweets. “And then all of the sudden somebody’s my best friend. I could give you 20 examples. You could give me 30. I’m a very flexible person.”

Trump’s remarks to the newspaper come one day after he told South Korea’s leader that he was open to direct talks with North Korea on its nuclear program.

On Saturday, Trump told reporters he would be open to speaking with Kim, but not without preconditions.

“Sure. I always believe in talking,” he told reporters at Camp David. “If something can happen and something can come out of those talks, that would be a great thing for all of humanity.” 

Trump has previously dismissed the idea of direct talks with North Korea, tweeting in October that negotiations with the country were a waste of time.

“I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man,” he said on Twitter. “Save your energy Rex, we’ll do what has to be done!”