U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Friday that Washington will establish relations with North Korea.
"We will have relations with North Korea, with Kim Jong Un," Trump said at a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House.
Trump said he gets along with the North Korean leader.
"I think it's a very big asset for everybody that I do get along with him. I mean, I get along with him, he gets along with me. And that's a good thing, not a bad thing," he said.
Ishiba, for his part, said they affirmed the need to address North Korea's nuclear and missile program, which poses a "serious threat" to Japan, the U.S. and beyond.
"Japan and the U.S. will work together toward the complete denuclearization of North Korea," he added.
Turning to the abductee issue, Ishiba said he conveyed determination to Trump and gained his "renewed strong support" for the immediate resolution of the abductions issue. Tokyo accuses Pyongyang of abducting its citizens during the 1970s and 1980s.
Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to set foot on North Korean territory in 2019. As part of negotiations with Pyongyang over its illicit nuclear and ballistic missile programs, he met with Kim in the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea.
Since then, North Korea has carried out a series of missile and nuclear tests, including what it claims was the successful launch of a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile in 2023.
Trump, whose first three weeks in office have shredded norms and shaken foreign capitals from Ottawa to Bogota, has taken a more conventional approach to Washington's longstanding Asia-Pacific allies, including Japan, South Korea, Australia and the Philippines.
"After our meeting today, I'm confident that the cherished alliance between our two countries and others also will continue to flourish long and into the future," Trump said.
He said he would announce reciprocal tariffs on many countries next week.
Asked if Japan would also be targeted, Trump said: "We're going to have tariffs, mostly reciprocal tariffs... and I'm going to be probably meeting on that on Monday... that's the only fair way to do it."
Asked about the possibility of tariffs, Ishiba stressed the "unprecedented" Japanese investment target in the U.S., which he said would create many jobs. He said he was "unable to respond to a theoretical question."
