Trump cut short the meeting with Kim Jong-un, as he demands to lift the sanctions and leave nuclear weapons

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday he cut short his nuclear summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un because the two sides could not agree on sanctions. The series of meetings between the two leaders in Hanoi, Vietnam started Wednesday night and was scheduled to conclude with a signing ceremony for some sort of agreement between the two nuclear powers. Instead, the talks were cut short on Thursday — even before Trump and Kim could share a pre-planned lunch — and the White House announced there would be nothing to sign.

“It wasn’t a good thing to be signing anything,” Trump said during a post-summit news conference. “We had some options, and at this time we decided not to do any of the options, and we’ll see where that goes.” “Sometimes you have to walk, and this was just one of those times,” he added.

Trump is pushing North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons as he dangles the prospect of an economic boost to the repressive country. Kim, experts say, wants to see sanctions eased without losing the strategic benefits of his weapons of mass destruction.

The president said he had not committed to a third summit with the North Korean dictator. Still, Trump described the talks as “productive,” and highlighted his relationship with Kim — “I think we’ll end up being very good friends.” At the end of the day, though, Trump said he “would not have been happy about” any deal he saw on the table for Thursday’s talks.

North Korea currently faces United Nations sanctions and separate sanctions from the United States. The UN blocks some imports and exports and has frozen the assets of individuals connected with Pyongyang’s nuclear program. The United States restricts the North Korean economy further and targets more individuals.

Trump-Kim summit was cut short after North Korea demanded an end to sanctions, Trump says, CNBC, Feb 28