CaliToday (25/10/2025): Frantic speculation is building in Seoul that the world is about to witness a fourth, high-stakes summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, after South Korea’s top unification minister said Friday there was a "considerable" chance the two leaders will meet during Trump's visit to the peninsula next week.
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| Kim met Trump three times for high-profile summits during the US leader's first term (Brendan Smialowski) (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/AFP) |
President Trump is scheduled to arrive in South Korea on Wednesday for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, a trip that already includes a critical, high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
However, a series of revealing, on-the-ground actions at the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) has suggests a second, more dramatic meeting may be in the works.
On-the-Ground Signs: "Sprucing Up" the DMZ
Adding tangible evidence to the diplomatic chatter, South Korea and the United Nations Command have abruptly halted all public tours of the Joint Security Area (JSA) from late October through early November. The JSA, also known as Panmunjom, is the "truce village" in the middle of the DMZ and the only place where soldiers from the two Koreas stand face-to-face.
This sudden lockdown of the JSA is a classic move for preparing a high-level visit.
Even more telling, South Korea’s unification minister, Chung Dong-young, told reporters that North Korean soldiers have been spotted "sprucing up" their side of the JSA for the first time this year.
"They have been seen cleaning, pulling weeds, tidying flower beds, and taking photos," Chung said, describing activity that strongly implies they are "setting the stage" for a VIP event.
Chung, whose ministry handles the fraught relations with Pyongyang, stated that North Korea appears "to be paying attention to the United States" and that "various signs... suggest a considerable possibility of a meeting."
Seoul’s Desperate Plea: "Don't Let This Slip Away"
For South Korea, which has long acted as a mediator, a fourth summit is a golden opportunity to restart stalled diplomacy. Minister Chung made an impassioned plea for the two leaders to seize the moment.
"I don't want to miss even a one percent chance," Chung said, highlighting Seoul's urgency. "They need to make a decision... Do not let this chance slip away."
The last-minute nature of the potential meeting would be a direct echo of their last encounter.
In 2019, Trump and Kim met at Panmunjom in the JSA in a dramatic, impromptu summit that was hastily arranged after Trump extended an invitation to Kim on Twitter just one day prior. That historic event saw the two leaders shake hands over the concrete slabs dividing North and South before Trump walked a few paces into Pyongyang's territory becoming the first sitting US president ever to set foot on North Korean soil.
A Stalemate of "Fond Memories" and "Delusional" Demands
Despite the spectacular photo-op, those 2019 talks ultimately collapsed. The diplomatic process fell apart over the fundamental, unresolved gap between the two sides: how much of its nuclear arsenal North Korea was willing to give up, and how much sanctions relief Pyongyang would get in return.
Both leaders have recently signaled a conditional openness to talking again.
President Trump has said he hopes to meet Kim again, possibly this year, and recently (in August) hailed his personal relationship, stating he knew Kim "better than anybody, almost, other than his sister."
Kim Jong Un, for his part, said last month that he had "fond memories" of Trump. However, he attached a major condition, stating he was only open to talks if the United States dropped its "delusional" demand that Pyongyang must first give up its nuclear weapons.
If a meeting does materialize next week, it will thrust President Trump into a diplomatic whirlwind, forcing him to navigate a nuclear standoff with Kim Jong Un and a trade war with China's Xi Jinping, all in the span of a few days.