. >> kim jong-un has total control. >> americans should be afraid of kim jong-un. he is a very credible thread t the security of the american people. >> a terrifying war of words. >> rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself. >> between a brash american president and a reclusive north korean ruler. >> translator: the u.s. main lamainland is in the range of our strike. >> we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. >> he may have 20 nuclear weapons, missiles that eventually might hit the united states. >> he sees having nuclear weapons as essential to his survival. >> after seven decades in near isolation, is the country's leader, kim jong-un, changing the global game for north korea? >> for the first time, the leader of north korea stepped into south korea. >> one of the first things he has done is make himself a more acceptable figure on the international stage. >> kim jong-un does something which nobody expects. he again changes the balance of this regime. >> as the historic summit between president donald trump and kim jong-un nears, what wil

talking about this meeting with kim jong un, believing it's a historic moment. ou said, there are a lot of questions over whether kim jong un can actually keep this commitment to complete denuclearization. the president has been very critical of the iran nuclear deal, said it's the worst deal ever made. so one of the questions is will this north korean deal be tougher than the iran nuclear deal? the president says it can't be %-ps committed to complete denuclearization. he says it may take time, we're going to have to watch the steps. he says we are going to have to verify it but he believes that commitment coming from kim jong un. he also said that kim jong un is prepared to take steps toward that goal that go beyond what was in this communeky and says those are going to be announced very, very soon. in fact, he said he they could be announced by kim jong un as he returns to his country he's already on his way right now, including the destruction of more nuclear sites. of course we're going to have wait and see if that's going to happen. and the big question on

we have the team camped outside kim jong—un's current residential address. outside kim jong—un's current have kimjong—un having left the saint regis hotel, where he is staying. mariko 0i, what is happening, kim jong—un has staying. mariko 0i, what is happening, kimjong—un has left the hotel? yes, he has left, about five minutes ago. slightly earlier than we expected. the cars were parked outside for 20 minutes and then we saw them coming out and getting in the carand saw them coming out and getting in the car and they left for the capella hotel, which is about 20 or 30 minutes from here by car. as you can imagine, but i'm me, lots of media interest and flash photography as they left. kim jong—un is on his way to the capella hotel. isn't its uprising that president donald trump arrived on sentosa island much earlier than kim jong—un —— arrived on sentosa island much earlier than kimjong—un —— isn't its uprising? why the delay in... they seem to be slightly ahead of the official schedule that we were given and they have left slightly earlier. we thought he might be leaving around 8:30am lo

president lincoln, meet kim jong-un. >> anybody said we'd be sitting here today talking about kim jong-un sitting down with president donald trump. >> he's like a maniac. >> you would have thought we were insane. >> in just months, we have gone from schoolyard taunts. >> he's a sick puppy. >> to the hair raising rhetoric of war. >> they will be met with fire and fury. >> to a history-making moment. >> trump's groundbreaking summit with kim jong-un. >> i think it's going to be a very big success. >> the stakes could not be higher. >> read the twitter feed. follow it increasingly closely. >> kim jong-un knows and has read "the art of the deal." >> but donald trump wrote the book. >> this is the ultimate deal. >> great danger on the downside. but if he could pull it off there's tremendous reward on the upside. >> danger. from a violent dictator. >> his own uncle killed by a firing squad. >> they're not crazy. they're brutal. >> but now, a new face of kim jong-un. >> all of a sudden he is literally toasting with the most powerful leaders in the world. >> this is north korea? >> kim jong-un at

>> do you now see kim jong-un as an equal? >> in what way? >> you just showed a video that showed you and kim jong-un on equal footing and discussing the future. >> no, i think i don't view it that way. i don't view it that way. i'll do whatever it takes to make the world a safer place. if i have to say i'm sitting on a stage, i mean, i understand what you're getting at. if i have to say i'm sitting on a stage with chairman kim and that's going to get us to save 30 million lives, maybe more than that, i'm willing to sit on the stage. i'm willing to travel to singapore, very proudly, very gladly. again, other than the fact that it is taking my time, they have given up a tremendous amount. they've given it up even before, and even add the olympics to it. you can add the olympics to the question. they went to the olympics. they took an olympics, it was going to be a massive failure, maybe wouldn't have even opened, and made it a tremendous success by agreeing to participate. add that to the list of things they've done. brian, if i can save millio

>> i would be careful about using the word desperate with kim jong-un. hinge he has proved himself be a very shrewd and capable operator. he is only in his early 30s. his grandfather lived into his early 80s. so kim jong-un is looking at the possibility of 50 more years in power. and i do think he recognizes that changing the economy is important, and i think the chinese who have followed a similar model of economic liberalization with tight political controls have been pushing hmm to change. he is, i think, in some significant ways different than his father and his grandfather. how far he's prepared to go, we don't know. one of the probls is that the north korean political system, which is built around worship of the supreme leader as a kind of god-like figure doesn't easily lend itself to opening up without undermining that political system. so that's going to a real challenge if s donald trump is offering mcdonald's in pyongyang, exchange programs, all sorts of things. thitical impact on the north, it's tricky. so we're going to have to wait and see. b

who is kim jong-un? s the third kim of the kim regime, replacing his father in 2011, kim jong-un has shown to be a pretty brutal dictator of sorts. he recently just in the past couple years assassinated his brother, and he's known to remove high level assistants in a very nonsubtle way in order to establish his power, as you could say, in north korea. he's continued to take north korea down a path of belligerent goals, developing nuclear capabilities, and, you know, it's interesting to see now how things are developing, though. pete: riley, i'm going to attempt to ask a nuanced question here. i don't know if it will work or not. but is this a guy who relishes the ruthlessness, who wants to lock people up and kill them, or a guy who has inherited his throne and done what is necessary to keep his power but is looking for an off ramp? >> he might not be as ruthless as we think. it is a nuanced question so it requires a nuanced answer. he tests trump, they continue to test chemical and biological warfare weap

in the one-on-one remember donald trump said he will be sizing up kim jong-un but kim jong-un is alsozing up donald trump and kim is going to be assessing whether president trump is serious about this being a one shot deal or if a credible military threat is on the table. if kim doesn't think diplomacy has a sunset i think this is a massive stafg failure given what we think is full hours. i can't think of conversation president trump has had for any foreign leader. >> i remember leading talking about in a meeting he had with her was very well versed in the nuclear policy and was able to answer some very intricate nuclear details without having to go to aides. it's going to interesting to see how well-versed kim jong-un is if this meeting goes on and it is time to get into specifics. it's not clear that president trump is really that sort of a leader. he tends to set himself up as being much more about big picture. >> north korea's nuclear program is much more advanced. we are talking about a nuclear complex and nuclear weapons as well as technology that goes into this program. donald

president trump and kim on-jong un meeting in sin baa pore. can they quince kconvince kim t give up his nuclear weapons? cnn counter terrorism elliot mud, and -- wisdom everything. admiral kirby i want to give you there. we're getting information coming out of this meeting right now. this is from kim jong-un, this is through an interpreter. it says, of course there are challenges ahead, but i am ready or willing. it's not clear if he said ready or willing, he could have said either one, to do this. and that's what kim jong-un said during that extended bilateral meeting. what do you think of that, admiral? >> hopeful. i'm optimistic like a lot of people that this can lead to some success here. look, this is something north koreans have said before, recently as 2005, kim's father says very much the same kind of things coming out of that urther advanced their l apart. nuclear weapons program. i'm hopeful about this but i think we all need to be clear eyed about what can be done on what kind of time scale. >> john, this is for you. this is during t

expected to land in singapore this hour where he will prepare for tuesday's historic summit with kim jong-un. >> a good question, how long will it take? i think within the first minute i'll know. >> how? >> just my touch, my feel. that's what i do. >> well, the north korean leader kim jong-un arrived just a few hours ago. and upon his arrival he was greeted by singapore's minister for foreign affairs before his motorcade departed for the hotel. >> we'll cover the historic news with hallie jackson at the singapore airport tracking president trump. >>> and bill neely at the where the summit will take place with kim jong-un. hallie jackson, to you first. good morning to you. what's the latest on the president's arrival? >> reporter: hey there, richard and alex, we expect it to happen within the next half hour according to the guidance from the white house. the president will pull up and land right here from air force one. let me tell you, we are packed in like sardines here. on the tarmac of singapore air business. what i'm seeing so far, it doesn't look like -- typically when the president arr

kim jong un saying, rather unkind thingsbout president trump. yet, here they are in the same building at the same time. what remains to be seen though is just how serious kim jong un is about the process of denuclearization. mike pompeo the secretary of state has told us on a couple of occasions now said he was told in person by kim jong un because he has met him twice in person this will be the third time that kim jong un wants to denuclearize. that he has a personal commitment from kim that, yes, he wants to go ahead and do it. but it would seem to cut against the grain last two or three decades u entered into negotiations. maybe rolling back nuclear program. the north koreans have done one thing on one hand and then they have done something quite different on the other u remember, they said they were going to get rid of plutonium production system and then they merely swapped that out for enriched uranium which is what led to nuclear bombs that they had been test you had. the president going into this with a great degree of skepticism that nor

kim jong-un had just inherited the cruelest, most repressive dictatorship on earth. s father kim jong-il was dead from a heart attack. in icy pyongyang, tens of thousands lined the streets. for many mourners, it was a chance to catch a glimpse of their new leader. >> people believed he's too young. he's too inexperienced. >> there were real fears that kim jong-un still in his 20s was not up to the job. >> he looked like a boy. there he is sobbing over his father's casket. >> some doubted that he could ever command the kind of cult-like worship his grandfather and his father inspired. a reaction like this. >> i don't want to say it's insincere but let's say the enthusiasm's over the top. these people are going to be on north korean television. >> it's the questione so often ask about north korea. is this real? or is it pronda? watch again. as the camera moves down the line of mourners, most seem to react only when the camera reaches them. this godfather-like drama ran for days on north korean television. it became propaganda. it is the life blood of north korea. and on

now, a new face of kim jong-un. all of a sudden he is toasting with the most powerful leaders of the world. this is north korea? >> kim jong-un at the water park, on the roller coasters wl his beautiful wife. one thing never changed. >> they always wanted the nuclear weapons. >> how much does donald trump really know? >> he is a smart cookie. >> about the man he made a deal with. >> incredible uncertainty. if you wait you die. >> consequences for the next 60, 70, hundreds of years. >> good evening, i'm faree fareed, zakaria. i want to show you a video. one that tells you the story of north korea. this is our planet seen from the space station. that area is south korea, a blaze with light and life. this black hole, looks like water, is north korea. it is a country so impoverished and backwards it seems to be from another century. the economy of south korea is 36 times larger than that of the north yet somehow, the north korean leader commands the center of the world stage. this is the story of kim jong-un, his past, p

president is saying kim jong-un will be invited to the white house. >> there's no question that kim jong-uns a bad guy and he's committed atrocities that are unfoble. we've been running, what? nuclear drills in guam and other places because past administrations have been kicking the can down the road and not dealing with this giant issue. this is the issue. >> what does it say about american values and other dictatordic dictators around the world. >> the issue is, you've got a u.s. citizen, otto warmbier, who came back blind, deaf -- a year ago today, and essentially murdered. and now, his parents are suing north korea. not one word from donald trump. the fact of the matter is, kim jong-un has not just done this to americans. he's done this to his half-brother. >> he doesn't want to kill the deal over something while he's focusing on the big target right now. >> it's a function of tone, though. eling with a cold-blooded murderer. >> we were arguing about his tone and now look where we are. >> let's go back a decade or so. the idea of a u.s. president and holding a summit with a dictator lik

>> that's kim jong-un. >> okay. >> i have no idea. >> it's kim jong-un. there is a lot of similarities between the personalities, right? they're both big personalities and they've both got something to prove. >> i should say i knew that is kim jong-un because i read about it. not for any other reason. it could have easily have applied to donald trump. >> there is this huge age gap between these two men. on thursday, donald trump will celebrate his birthday,une 14th. and he had a bit of anly birthday cake, apparently, tweeting out a photo of the event. what is interesting is what trump will be turning 72. kim jong-un we think is in his 30s. so there is this sort of difference, generational difference between these two men. how do you think there will play into all of this? >> i think that kim jong-un understands this is an opportunity if played right to become a world power and not just because he has a nuke. and perhaps kim jong-un is also smart enough to also recognize that at some point the rubber will meet the road when he might be forced out by another

evan: i think kim jong-un clearly has demonstrated that he can learn rapidly. worked in the white house during the transition from can jong-il to kim jong-un. it was ad out with -- pretty rocky road at first. he was very focused on domestic political consolidation. a few pretty tough things like eliminating his uncle and cronies in a very brutal way. played a aly limited hand of cards. he was able to rebuild relations with south korea very rapidly, reconcile us china, demonstrates this is someone who understands how to manipulate international politics and play a limited hand very, very well. yvonne: we have 30 seconds left. given what we have seen with the u.s. and allies, will that affect singapore? evan: the north koreans really are not focused on what happened with the g7. the north koreans have already made up their mind what kind of person trump is. the friction with european allies at the g7, i don't think, has much of an effect. trump sought to look tough by criticizing, you know, many of his counterparts. i don't think that really affects this very much

but kim jong-un did smile broadly as they were walking off and kim jong-un has had the old hug and arm tug when he was with president moon jae-in. secretary of state pompeo said yesterday, for all the talks, for all the hopes, for everything, nobody can make the decisions except for the two people that will be in that room together and those are those two people. you have to remember that just a few months ago, it was all talk of war and bluster and fire and fury and destruction. and kim turned on a dime with his new year's speech. he sent his delegation to south korea. he sent his sister for what is called the peace olympics. and so he has actually been almost in the driving seat from the beginning and talk is better than war. what did churchill say? >> you spent a lot of time meeting with north koreans over many years, what do you think is going to take place, how impot is this face to face in private? >> i think it is very important. and the day, the way they met -- >> let's listen in. >> mr. president, how do you feel -- >> i feel really great. going to have a great reception. and

i am jeff glor in singapore, we will see you again soon. >> dictator, kim jong un. have arrived at the ingapore's sentosa is >>> president donald trump is minutes away from a historic meeting with north korea's dictator kim jong un. both leaders have arrived at the summit site on singapore's sentosa island. >> it is tuesday morning in singapore and we expect to see the two leaders shake hands for the very first time, then go to a room for the summit with only their translators present. the expectation is that their initial meeting will last about 45 minutes. the north korean leader waved to crowds as he took a nighttime stroll ahead of the meeting. earlier in the day president trump met with singapore's president and expressed his optimism about the summit. >> in the final hours before the meeting president trump was tweeting about the haters and losers who say this summit is a major loss to the u.s. writing, "we have our hostages, testing, research and all missile launches have stopped. we will be fine." >> jeff glor is traveling with the president, as you saw, liv

but kim jong—un, the reaches out for a second handshake. very fleeting eye contact. eye contact is of paramount importance. the handshake was on for so long. the handshake was on for so long. the eye contact was not for too long. donald trump, being a businessman, he is looking for his eyes. i will begin to see where this goes and what they talk about later. very little eye contact between the two men, very much looking ahead at the people taking the photos. more interested looking straightforward. for me, robert, i wonder if you agree with this assessment, the enormity of this event, perhaps dawning on them now as they look slightly uncomfortable. six months ago it was to card and all the rest of it, six months ago we were talking about nuclear war on the peninsular and this is a rapid turnaround, one of the concerns about the analyst community's opinion, swinging dramatically. a month ago we were talking about donald trump getting a nobel prize and now we're talking about this being a get—to—know—you meeting and the beginning of the proces

you saw it while kim jong-un has been here. he makes his way to this meeting that did certainly seem unlikely. this is a new era for kim jong-un, he's called it that, state news in north korea has called this the possibility of a new era we've seen the emergence of a dictator who was an incredibly reclusive figure just months ago, now in singapore ready to meet the american president. he's travelled to meetouth korean president, and spotted throughout singapore. he was greeted by the foreign minister, when he arrived here, he went to visit with the prime minister, and then in a surprising move, the motorcade picked him up last night after dark, and he was given a sight seeing tour of singapore. there was even a selfie with singapore's foreign minister. this is the moment that he waited for. the opportunity to come face to face with the president, we've said it so often anderson. what comes of this meeting will have too do with the chemistry between these two men. the goals have been established. the united states, the administra

we have kim jong-un here and staying at the st. regis hotel. rother actually used to stay quite often. that is the same brother that kim jong-un reportedly had killed with a chemical attack at an airport just last year. so it really goes to show the dichotomy here. you remember something like that about the north korean dictator, someone who has the human rights things that need to be brought up by the u.s. side, experts say, and it's really here with this flurry of diplomatic activity later. before the white house left the white house to go to canada for the g7 summit he took questions from several reporters, including myself, and i asked him are you going to bring up human rights when you sit down face-to-face with kim jong-un? he answered pretty quickly saying he would bring it up a enthey would talk about it when they sat down in singapore on tuesday morning. we should note when the president was meeting with someone who is accompanying kim jong-un on this trip they say they didn't bring up human rights up even though they met in the oval of

he'll know by touch and feel, he says, whether or not this will be a successful one-on-one with kim jong-un, if the two will make progress toward talk. on the other side toward denuclearization and the talks. on the other side for kim jong you c jong-un, this is a win. he's wanted to sit down with the american president. a lot of reward here but a lot of risk, particularly looking at the international climate and where he stands with both friends and frenemies now as well as former foes and current foes like north korea. >> talking about north korea, bill neely, it's been a busy several hours here so far. as we have seen kim jong-un arrive into singapore and then just moments ago i understand he had a meeting with the leader, prime minister lee, there at the presidential palace. >> reporter: yeah, richard, he's been busy and that meeting is still going on. we are in unknown territory right now because almost literally kim has never been here before, but it's the furthest he's ever been outside the bubble of pyongyang. but diplomatically as well, unknown territory was the phrase donald trump

my guess is that kim jong un data. that when the president retracted the agreement to make this meeting, and kim jong un came back with consolatory. >> there's nothing bellicose about that, they blinked. maybe kim jong un was selling his own and tell guys that he's doing a great job of assessing the options. >> we will have details about this document. the president is going to be speaking about this historic summit, 4:00 a.m. eastern. when we come back, we will have a lot more details and talking about that coming up. >> ed: this is a fox news alert, this is in singapore. we have breaking details about this document that was signed by president trump and kim jong un. the document now spells out that he commits to quote complete denuclearization of the peninsula. president trump, the document says, committed to providing security guarantee as to the dprk and chairman kim jong un reconfirmed his firm and unwavering commitment to complete denuclearization of the korean peninsula. so you will have critics coming out sayin

. >> president trump and north korean dictator kim jong-un signing a historic agreement, promising the world will see major change. the u.s. offering protection for north korea, kim jong-un committing to denuclearization. >> we both want to do something, we both are going to do something. we have developed a very special bond. people are going to be very impressed. >> he even showed him the inside of the presidential limo, saying he will invite him to the white house. he referenced a science fiction movie describing the summit. >> what's next for the two nations and what it all means for the korean peninsula. >>> worldwide reaction coming in at this hour. trump and kim face to face. the historic summit. continuing coverage right now on "america this morning." >>> good tuesday morning. we're going to start with the scene that unfolded in singapore. president trump and kim jong-un exchange warm greetings, kind words in the quest for a nuclear free north korea. >> the two leaders signed a letter that included a commitment from the u.s. to provide what's called unique security assurances.

what about kim jong-un? president has spoken very positively about kim jong-un to get him to the table and move these conversations along. but once's sitting down with him as much as he wants a deal, let's not white wash the fact that this is a dictator in kim jong-un who has been brutal on his own people, he has been starving him. >> i don't think he should and i don't think he'll. i am sure the subject of human rights will come out. the issue is what priority should it have? is it more important than getting north korea to agree to denuclearize, to get rid of not only its nuclear weapons and the icbms that can deliver them to san francisco. what is more important? if the president wants to emphasize nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction in this initial gathering with kim jong-un, i don't think i would fault him for that. ed: if i interrupt you in a moment, you know we are friends. i'm not trying to be rude to you. we are seeing movement at the palace in singapore where we know the president has be

resolve this through diplomatic means and i understand that the president thinks that if he flatters kim jong-unat maybe kim jong-un will submit, but a lot of history suggests that there's -- this is a bigger challenge than the president suggested at his press conference. >> another head spinning element of this, david, is all of the president's media boosters who is heads exploded when barack obama suggested he would meet with the u.s.'s enemies even without preconditions are now champions of this move and cheerleading president trump who just did the same thing that president obama said he would do. do you think president obama should have done something different now in hindsight now seeing all of this what seems to be, you know, warm reception with kim jong-un and maybe a possible path forward? should president obama have done it differently? >> i think it is fair criticism to say that a succession of american administrations have failed to subdue north korea's nuclear program. that is a fair statement and so a different approach is something that should be embraced, but only if it leads to

kim jong-un had a good summit. at the end of the day he went from international pariah, scorned by the world, multilateral sanctions including those of the united nations, to being seen as an equal, meeting with the president of the united states, the leader of the free world on equal footing. the president used words like it was an honor to meet him and talked about how he cared about and it is well documented that tens of thousands in north korean prisons when tens of thousands of others are starving and when kim jong-un has used assassination to keep himself in power. nor is neither honorable it someone who loves his people. at a time that we need to , already china has a summit about seeking relief for north korea at the united nations. the begins to unravel essence of maximum pressure which you need especially in light that you have achieved nothing tangible as a result of the summit. marvel to see a president who chastises leaders that have been part of a coalition whose sons and daughters have died alongside

jillian: he is prepared to walk away if he realizes kim jong un is not there to denuclearize, that's one of the things, denuclearization or nothing basically. rob: yeah, and the president and mr. pompeo as well. secretary of state has indicated that kim jong un knows what the united states means by denuclearize and has shown a willingness to do that which is the first step of progress to make something like this happen, make a deal like this happen, a deal which has been speculated to be a failure from the get-go by a lot of the media and president's opponents saying there's no real shot of making anything happened. jillian: you mentioned the g7 coverage, you mentioned onto bigger and better things now and that's, of course, what we are waiting, over the weekend president trump did speak about the upcoming summit with north korean dictator kim jong un and he did say he's very optimistic about this meeting. rob: yeah, absolutely. in singapore just -- >> but i really feel confident. i feel that kim jong un wants to do something great for his people and he has that opportunity and he won

president trump and kim jong-un about to make history, meeting face to face for a summit with extremelyninsula, the region and the world. kim jong-un strolling the streets of singapore, enjoying his new-found fame and taking a selfie. has the isolated dictator become a man of the people? as north korea prepares to discuss denuclearization, cnn is learning details of deep concern over whether kim jong-un would keep his word and destroy his arsenal. hellish comments. the trump team blasts one of america's closest allies with scathing remarks. why is the administration taking a belligerent down toward canada while cozying up to the kim regime? welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you are in "the situation room." >> this is cnn breaking news. >> the breaking news tonight, president trump and kim jong-un now just three hours away from their historic meeting in singapore. changes continue. cnn has confirmed mr. trump moved up his departure

president trump heads home from the summit with kim jong-un saying he trusts the north korean dictator. but why is he relying on kim's vague promise to denuclearize when north korea has repeatedly broken its promises. >>> very provocative. the president shocked south korea by announcing a halt to u.s. military exercises that the u.s. has conducted with seoul for decades. did the commander-in-chief under cut a key ally and america's security by stopping what he called very provocative war games. >>> motivated by fear. despite kim jong-un's atrocities, president trump said his country loves him. the president may be impressed by north koreans display of enthusiasm, but human rights experts say those crowds know the alternatives are prison camps and execution squads. >>> and merger approved. a federal judge rules in favor of the landmark merger between at&t andearner. cnn's corporate parent that the government sought to block the move and how will it respond. i'm wolf blitzer and you're in "the situation room". >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >>> president trump is heading home f

kim jong—un was out hunting people, laughing, lots of pictures of kim jong—un laughing with north koreansf north koreans laughing with kimjong—un, many thought it is a dictator, they are afraid he will shoot them. but now what we do receive because of mike pompeo laughing with kimjong—un? i think there is a level of gentlemen that we did not understand because we we re that we did not understand because we were not valuing him in this north korean context. now he is really sad into an international arena. this is a different kind of north korean leader that he was to be different for this country. thank you for coming out yetjohn delury onto this very hot rooftop. but it is an exciting day. thanks, sharanjit. we will get more from you shortly. first, let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. malta is continuing to refuse to accept a rescue vessel carrying more than 600 migrants, who have been picked up off libya's coast. the maltese authorities say the boat is italy's responsibility. but the new italian interior minister, matteo salvini, says he doesn't want the vessel

followed by kim jong-un in his motorcade. president trump arriving here on what he calls a mission of peace. the president said he'll know in the first minute if kim jong-un is serious. that tweet from president trump just moments ago saying we'll all know soon. president trump on his way to that meeting site right now. in stark contrast to the dictator who tested more bombs and missiles than his father and grandfather taking a selfie. with singapore's foreign minister. a sight seeing walk surrounded by body guards. it was not long ago kim jong-un was celebrating his missile blasts. is he truly ready to give all that up? jonathan karl here in singapore leading us off. >> reporter: this is donald trump's moment. even for this showman president, no move has been bolder, riskier. no spotlight more bright, more intense. at lunch with singapore's prime minister, he sounded confident, but restrained. >> i think things could work out very nicely. >> reporter: "great to be in singapore," he tweeted. "excitement in the air!" at a meeti

player. >> he had a very good one. >> reporter: president trump's challenge tonight, assessing kim jong-un's honesty, but even back then, it's thought he lived under an assumed name, un pak, and a disntrelative, now a defector, told us kim jong-un's father taught him to use fear as a weapon, while even cia experts call him the hardest of targets to read. >> know your adversary is the key piece of advice i would suggest. it's important to remember that kim is a complicated character. >> reporter: soon, president trump will sit down with kim jong-un, face-to-face, eye to eye. what's your advice? >> try to find a sense of humor. >> reporter: his time in europe could impact whether he's open to the west. the stakes tonight couldn't be higher. keir simmons, n news, switzerland. >>> and what is taking place here is an event like singapore has never seen. nearly 2,600 reporters now on site, $20 millionpent on security. you might be wondering, out of anywhere in the world, why singapore for this summit? we put just that question to a top expert here, a professor from singapore university. what makes

the flags, the touching, the warm words, how kim jong-un might be able to use all of these opt ticks to his advantage once he's back on home turf. >>> but first, president trump's not alone in thinking kim jong-un's a good guy. here's dennis rodnesota weighing in from the sidelines. >> i don't look at him as a dictator, i look at him as a person that wants to try to blend in with the world. i try to convey that to people but people looked at me like i was out of my mind. find the remote yet? nah. honey look, your old portable cd player. my high school rethainer. oh don't... it's ear 90s sitcom star dave coulier... cut...it...out! [laughing] what year is it? as long as stuff gets lost in the couch, you can count on geico saving folks money. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. with the right steps, hasn't left my side. 80% of recurrent ischemic strokes could be prevented. a bayer aspirin regimen is one step to help prevent another stroke. so, i'm doing all i can to stay in his life. be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen.

there's the execution of kim jong-un's own half brother and his uncle. kim jong-un said to be responsible for murdering his own family. we know his regime killed otto warmbier. of that we're certain. warmbier, the american college student, jailed for stealing a propaganda poster and tortured. when reportered asked president trump about the representation in north korea. he acknowledged the situation came up. >> it's a rough situation. we did discuss it today strongly. it's rough in a lot of places, by the way, not just there. >> shep: rough in a lot of places. president trump said he and kim jong-un discussed the human rights issue at pretty good length. he went on to say, relatively speaking compared to denuclearization, all the murders and stuff, not so much. the president said we'll be doing something on it but he didn't elaborate. gene cummings is with us. what do we know about the plight of his people? >> we don't know a whole lot because -- >> shep: was our description generally speaking accurate? >> from what we know. we know from defectors what th

america wants kim jong—un to give up all of his nuclear weapons and missiles. s obviously blown up the nuclear test site we know of, but whether or not he will give up all of the weapons remains unclear. stay with us, mariko 0i. i want to bring the viewers up—to—date with conversations on twitter, the medium that seems to be the popular 1a politicians and presidents around the world. —— one for. donald trump tweeted at 5am meetings between representatives are going quickly, but that does not matter. we will all know soon whether a real deal can happen. mike pompeo also tweeted a few hours ago saying we are ready, the us secretary of state, we are ready for the day, #sinaporesummit. with a hands praying emoji. make what you will. a lot of expectation. mike pompeo briefed journalists yesterday saying this is a possibility of progress with a lot of potential but said they will not lift sanctions against north korea if denuclearisation is not a real prospect. that is what we will be looking at in terms of the details when we get more information. for now, st regis,

i'm getting out there another narrative out there on kim jong-un. the problem is for all the reasons laid out, i'm concerned-- first of all before getting to this summit i think north korea-- kim jong-un has been playing this really well and i have to give him credit. after almost seven years of spending the time accelerating to complete the immigrant program he starts-- stops right before-- you know, he didn't go all the way. hurdles he hasn't crossed to complete the program, but stopped right before. then you seen him engage the last few months in diplomacy and that has gotten a lot he had a complete image makeover already. he got to meet with president king twice in multiple meetings twice with president moon and has hosted the russian prime minister. he's quite even popular in south korea. okay, he looks like a normal guy at least. he had a makeover and i'm concerned that all these pressures we are talking about is already hard to achieve because we are already hearing reports about even in china not really implementing sanctions. reports about s

a top aide it to kim jong un, due to arrive at the white hous. possibly minutes away to hand-deliver a letter. kim young chol, considered kim jong un's right-hand man. he is visiting washington. he has been here this week after two days of talks with secretary of state mike pompeo. america's top diplomats is real progress has been made toward the summit, which increasingly looks like it is back on after the president canceled that sit down last week. watch. speak always made real progress in the last 72 hours. at the conditions are putting them in a place where we think that there can be real progress made by the two of the meeting. it does no good if we don't think that there is a real opportunity to put them together. but we have made real progress toward that. >> harris: kevin has more from the north lawn. the opposite of the picture that you are seeing right now. we are hearing details about who will be greeting the north korean official. >> it is a very interesting opportunity for this white house, harris, not just for people like john bolton

the first time that xi jinping hosted kim jong-un, kim jong-un left the country as leader for the first time. he took the train to china. >> trace: took the train. rich edson, great information. thanks so much. kim jong-un's father wouldn't fly at all. he was afraid the planes would be shot down. one more time, the trains he was on had to be guarded because he was afraid they would attack the train. a lot going in to this upcoming meeting on june 12 that is now set. more ahid. the political fallout. depending what happens on june 12 or what doesn't happen. we'll have much more on the breaking news, the summit june 12 is back on according to president trump. people would stare. psoriasis does that. it was tough getting out there on stage. i wanted to be clear. i wanted it to last. so i kept on fighting. i found something that worked. and keeps on working. now? they see me. see me. see if cosentyx could make a difference for you- cosentyx is proven to help people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...find clear skin that can last. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before

wendy, you negotiated with kim jong- jong-un's father, kim jong-il, but never had to deal with dennis rodman. >> just watching this, i feel like president trump and kim jong-un are going to be members of "celebrity apprentice." this just feels like a sitcom of some sort as opposed to having the gravity that this is about the security of the united states of america. the president's obsession with looking strong and powerful and tough, which was what he thought he was doing at the g7, making sure his base is secure, which he believes he does when he pushes back, and even our friends and allies. now he finds himself in the middle of a rodeo with kim jong-un, who knows exactly what he wants and has a game plan he's going to follow. and dennis rodman, who is cheering from the sidelines. it's quite unusual. >> michael liter, one of the big challenges here is to figure out if there were a deal, if they come out with some statement, and pochmpeo said it's going so well we're going to wrap it up quickly and the president is going to be leaving tuesday night singapore time. quite a bit earlier

the united states, most things are turned down for the night in singore and surprise, surprise, kim jong-un, a man about town in singapore seeing the sights. taking selfies. drawing a lot of attention, and until now, the only person who knew both kim jong-un and donald trump, dennis rodman had been a bit off the screen. here now, as you pointed out, and it's unclear what role he will play. he's been unique among americans, developed a curious friendship with kim jong-un over the years and has been able to have some kind of dialogue with him making a number of visits to north korea and if people don't recall, he was also won of the players on "celebrity apprentice" came to know the president and his life in that world. a strange intersection of modern politics, diplomacy and pop culture all coming together here in singapore. now, the other meaner knows both kim jong-un and donald trump is mike pompeo, secretary of state. he briefed reporters here about what is expected. we'll get to that in a moment, but let's be in a rodman state of mind here and be reminded of what president trump himself

how are president trump and kim jong-un preparing? e a look. >> reporter: as the world awaits the landmark meeting between president trump and kim jong-un, surrounded by his security team, taking a late night walk, seeing the sights with his top deputies. surprised tourists catching a glimpse of the north korean dictator as he walks through this hotel lobby, then waving to the crowd. kim known all around the world as a ruthless dictator all smiles on the world stopping to the surprise birthday cake a few days before his 72nd birthday blowing out the gold the president saying we'll soon know whether a real deal can happen. >> thank you for watching on a monday night. we'll have live coverage at 9:00 p.m. eastern. president trump and kim jong-un coming face-to-face. i'm david muir. i hope t was killed when a large tree came crashing down, smashing her car as she was driving by. >>> good afternoon, thank you for joining us. >> this happened during the morning commute on 680 north.th. abc7 news reporter laura anthony has been following the

back on march 8, chairman kim jong-un expressed his desire to meet with president trump as soon as possible. on may 9, i met with chairman kim jong-un in pyongyang and explained america's expectations for denuclearization. we also secured the release of three americans at that time. we view this as a sign of good will from chairman kim jong-un. the united states and north korea have been holding direct talks in preparation for a summit and north korea has confirmed to us its willingness to denuclearize. a comprehensive whole of government effort in support of president trump's upcoming summit is underway. white house and state department led advance teams are finalizing with logistical preparations and will remain in place in singapore until the summit begins. the president is getting daily briefings from his national security team. the fact that our two leaders are coming to the table shows that the two sides are very serious. the diplomatic model we use today is different from past efforts. our efforts give us hope that we can find real success where past efforts have fallen short. presid

that when a top north korean official in the oval offi we could go to hand deliver the letter from kim jong un to president trump, there were stories in "the washington post" and elsewhere with former cleansing officials questioning why they had done such a photo off. for kim jong un and his regime. trump officials say they tried it that way. they can said we can't do photo ops. we can't do direct meetings, can't keep pressing sanctions. none of their ways worked. what's fascinating i now they are at the negotiating table, at least a long way to go, as has been noted by the pa i can tell you something new that secretary of state mike pompeo told us a short time ago before these talks commenced which is thahey are not, inside the trump administration, going to pull back on the crippling sanctions that have put kim jong un in the corner, pushed him to the point of potentially going broke. they are not going to pull back on the sanctions until they have a commitment to denuclearization. he may never offer it. but they are insisting they are going to take a tough lin in fact i can tell you mike po

president trump set to hold a press conference following the summit with dictator kim jong-un. we will bring you the comments live when the press conference gets under way. >>> moon jae-in was instrumental to bring kim jong-un and president trump together. he said he had a sleepless night. we have cnn's nic robertson joinings live. this is an -- joining us ve. this is amazing to watch this unfold. >> reporter: so much on the line for moon jae-in and people in south korea. one young man said he had seen this agreement and things play out as a photo opportunity, if you will. he was hoping that something more could come out of it and another lady said this is something we could not expect or believe in and now it is happening. there's a great hope for unification in korea. another elderly gentleman said my mother was shot during the korean war. this is something i never, ever thought would happen. north koreans were the absolute enemies. he described the situation now and he says it is apt. he said we are in the position with the key in the door. we have to hope we can turn that ke

what i think is happening here is kim jong un's advisors and kim jong un himself has already told secretary pompeo he is wanting to denuclearize. the proof of that and i think that's why president trump has shown some optimism about the summit that's underway. the real issue will be how do we tell if that's actually going to come to pass? here's how. we into a discussion. you have to identify and locate for us your nuclear arsenal. i mean they have ten to 20 weapons. we don't know where all of them are. they have to identify and locate where those were bizarre, where fuel sites are for the weapons, for the research sites are, the storage sites. they've got 70 to 80 ballistic missiles. we know where most of them are but not for all of them are. they have to identify and locate that through us. that's when you start to see the possibility that this will be successful if they are willing to come forward with that information which is after alltd information. >> shannon: what they feel guarantees the safety of their regime. you have to imagine it's going to be a good deal for them. i want to re

president trump is more than double kim jong-un's age. th certainly are going to have some jet lag, a lot of pressure on both of these leaders, but it is interesting to see the way that kim jong-un is dealing with that pressure, going out and about in a city that he has not been to before since he came to power. and it does really kind of set the stage for what tomorrow morning could look like. >> of course, part of that may be intentional, may be that he wants to project a sense of confidence that he's so well prepared, that he is happening to just walk around and take -- you see him taking a selfie with the foreign minister from singapor a lot of potential brinksmanship, gamesmanship going on here, but fascinating, you see on the right-hand side of the screen from earlier, kim jong-un walking amidst that huge security detail, which follows him everywhere, oftentimes you see his motorcade there on the left, you oftentimes see the security guards running along the side of his vehicle, about a dozen or so of them running alongside not this

sixth, don't try to be friends with kim jong-un. he killed his uncle, his half-brother and hundreds of others. he is a despot. those people up in canada, by the way, are our friends. and that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. msnbc's special coverage of the summit with brian williams and rachel maddow starts right now. >>> two volatile leaders. they have tested each other. >> rocket man should have been handled a long time ago. >> they've taunted each other. >> kim jong-un issued a direct response. i will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged u.s. dotard with fire. >> now, they're moments away from meeting for the first time face-to-face. >> i hope the upcoming meeting in singapore represents a bright new future to the world. >> with the stability of the region and the world on the line -- >> i don't think i have to prepare very much. >> will their summit bring us closer to peace or peril? this is an msnbc special report. the united states/north korea nuclear summit. here now areacow and brian wi >> and good

kim jong-un had a good summit. at the end of the day, he went from international pariah scorned by the world with multilateral sanctions including those at the united nations to being seen as an equal meeting with the president of the united states, the leader of the free world on an equal footing. the president used words like it was an honor to meet him and talked about how he cared about his people when it is well documented that tens of thousands sit in north korean prisons when tens of thousands others are starving, and when kim jong-un has used assassination to keep himself in power. that is neither honorable nor is it someone who loves his people. and at a time that we need to continues to exert our maximum pressure, already china as a result of the summit and what went on is talking about seeking relief for north korea at the united nations. that begins to unravel the essence of maximum pressure which you need especially in light that you have achieved nothing tangible as a result of the summit. so we -- i

>> still to come, president trump says he trusts kim jong-un, kim jong-un trusts him. could this gamble back fire? also, it is a lasting image from the g-7 summit, the german chancellor seemingly facing off with president trump, but the president explained this picture in detail this morning, what he says was really going on next. ancestrydna is only $69 for father's day. and with twice the detail of other tests... ...it can show dad where he's from ...and strengthen the bonds you share. give dad ancestrydna for just $69- our lowest father's day price ever. for just $69- i think, keep going, and make a difference. ome point, we are going to be able to beat als. because life is amazing. so i am hoping for a cure. i want this, to uh, to b a reality. um, yeah. it's just a burst pipe, i could fix (laugh) no. with claim rateguard your rates won't go up just beacuase of a claim. i totally could've... (wife) nope! switching to allstate is worth it. captured lightning in a bottle. over 260 years later as the nation's leader in energy storage we're ensuring americans have the e