NORTH KOREA/NUCLEAR/SUMMIT/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump hopes to move beyond pleasantries next week in his second meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, officials said on Thursday, describing the follow-up talks as more intensive than an inaugural round last year in Singapore. Even as he looks to convince Kim to abandon his nuclear program, however, Trump faces uncertainty about how willing the reclusive despot is to relinquish his stockpiles. A common definition of ‘denuclearization’ doesn’t yet exist, the officials said. And Kim hasn’t committed to a timeline of any sort…The comments reflected the uncertainty surrounding Trump’s diplomatic gambit with North Korea, which he insists is proceeding apace even as intelligence officials say there is little to indicate Pyongyang will ever abandon its nuclear ambitions. Trump has pointed to a recent absence of missile and nuclear testing as evidence of his diplomacy’s success. He says he is in no rush to end the diplomatic process, and on Wednesday indicated he would likely meet again with Kim after their talks next week in Vietnam.”
–Kevin Liptak, “Trump, Kim to meet one-on-one next week,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, February 21, 2019 9:17 am