Former top US envoy to North Korea: Trump meeting with Kim a ‘great outcome’

A former top U.S. diplomat to North Korea said Thursday he believes the planned meeting between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is “a great outcome.”

“What I hope comes out of the summit is that President Trump and Kim Jong Un paint a broad brush of the framework of where we need to go, agree on some principles and agree to kick off a process,” Joseph Yun, the former special representative for North Korea policy, told CNN. 

Yun announced his retirement late last month after 16 months on the job. He left just a few weeks after Trump’s pick for ambassador to South Korea withdrew from consideration for the office over disagreements with the White House’s policies. 

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A South Korean official announced last week that Trump had accepted an invitation from Kim to meet by May. The White House said the meeting wouldn’t happen “until we see concrete actions that match the words and the rhetoric of North Korea,” but later clarified it “fully expects” the meeting to take place.

The planned meeting comes after months of increased tensions between the U.S. and North Korea. Both country’s leaders repeatedly traded insults, while the U.S. also announced new sanctions on North Korea and Pyongyang claimed a successful missile test.

Yun told CNN on Thursday that the North Koreans have wanted to meet with Trump for some time, but it was only recently agreed to because of disagreement within the Trump administration over how to handle North Korea. 

“I think the time has now come, really, to speak with one single unified voice. And that voice has to be that of the president,” Yun said.