Donald Trump says he is willing to ‘make a deal’ with North Korea over nuclear weapons

Donald Trump says he is willing to negotiate with North Korea in an effort to end the rogue nation’s nuclear weapons programme.

The U.S. president urged Pyongyang to “come to the table” and “make a deal”.

In a notable shift from his usual aggressive rhetoric towards North Korea, Mr Trump took a more optimistic tone during a visit to South Korea on Tuesday, saying: “Ultimately, it’ll all work out.”

And while repeated his assertion that the U.S. would use military force if needed, he expressed his strongest inclination yet to deal with rising tensions with Pyongyang through diplomacy.

Speaking during a news conference with South Korean president Moon Jae-in, Mr Trump said: “It makes sense for North Korea to come to the table and make a deal that is good for the people of North Korea and for the world.

“I do see certain movement.”

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Mr Trump said he has seen “a lot of progress” in dealing with North Korea, though he stopped short of saying whether he wanted direct diplomatic talks.

He also underlined U.S. military options, noting that three aircraft carrier groups and a nuclear submarine had been deployed to the region.

But he said “we hope to God we never have to use” the military options.

During his first day in South Korea, Mr Trump lowered the temperature on his previously incendiary language about North Korea.

There were no threats of unleashing “fire and fury”, as Mr Trump previously warned, nor did the president revive his derisive nickname for dictator Kim Jung-un, “Little Rocket Man”.

But he did decree that the dictator is “threatening millions and millions of lives, so needlessly” and highlighted one of the central missions of his first lengthy Asia trip: to enlist many nations in the region, including China and Russia, to cut off Pyongyang’s economic lifeblood and pressure it into giving up its nuclear programme.

Mr Moon, who has been eager to solidify a friendship with Mr Trump, said he hoped the president’s visit would be a moment of inflection in the stand-off with North Korea and said the two leaders had “agreed to resolve the North Korea nuclear issue in peaceful manner” that would “bring permanent peace” to the peninsula.

“I know that you have put this issue at the top of your security agenda,” said Mr Moon.

“So I hope that your visit to Korea and to the Asia Pacific region will serve as an opportunity to relieve some of the anxiety that the Korean people have due to North Korea’s provocations and also serve as a turning point in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue.”

(Main picture: Getty)