The White House said Thursday that the nuclear summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was cut short and no agreement was reached.
The meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam end significantly earlier than had originally been scheduled, and a CNBC producer on the ground in Hanoi confirmed that she saw Trump’s motorcade leaving the summit site around 1:30 p.m. local time (1:30 a.m. ET).
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“The two leaders discussed various ways to advance denuclearization and economic driven concepts,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sander said. “No agreement was reached at this time, but their respective teams look forward to meeting in the future.”
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A previously planned joint signing ceremony appeared to have been cancelled.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders did not tell reporters why the schedule had changed and she declined to say whether there would be a signing ceremony.
A solo press conference for Trump that was originally scheduled for 3:50 p.m. local time (3:50 a.m. ET) had been moved to 2 p.m., according to NBC News.
South Korean stocks fell on the news that the summit’s schedule had been cut short.
Trump had repeatedly said at the start of Thursday’s talks that his relationship with Kim was strong, and that he expected that connection to eventually carry the two nuclear powers to an agreement.
Although both sides say they’ve been making progress in recent months, this round of top-level talks talks is focusing on many of the same issues as last June’s Singapore summit.
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 wants to see sanctions eased without losing the strategic benefits of his weapons of mass destruction.