President Trump said Tuesday that human rights abuses happen in “a lot of places” when asked if he would reverse his previous criticism of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s government.
“I believe it’s a rough situation over there,” Trump said during a press conference. “It’s rough in a lot of places, by the way, not just there.”
Trump was pressed by a reporter about his previous comments on Kim’s leadership following the historic summit in Singapore.
{mosads}“You at that point said that North Korea has more brutally oppressed its people than any regime on Earth,” the reporter asked, referencing Trump’s January State of the Union address.
Trump said at the time that the regime was a “cruel dictatorship” and called Kim a “depraved character.”
“Do you still believe that is the case having sat down with Kim Jong Un?” the reporter asked the president.
Trump said the two leaders did discuss human rights abuses at a “pretty good length” during the summit, despite originally meeting to talk about denuclearization.
“We will continue that and I think that ultimately we will agree to something,” Trump said.
Trump praised the North Korean leader after the summit, calling him a “very talented man” and a “very worthy, very smart negotiator.”