South Korea’s spy agency says US-North Korea summit could happen at any time

South Korea’s intelligence agency told lawmakers that a new summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could happen “at any time,” while acknowledging that no concrete contact had been confirmed.

The National Intelligence Service said it saw “signs of dialogue” between Washington and Pyongyang during a closed meeting of the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee. The briefing came as Trump has highlighted his relationship with Kim and sought to restart talks.

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At any time.

The agency also assessed that North Korea was far less likely to send additional troops to the war in Ukraine while it was engaged in a dialogue phase with Trump. It added that the possibility remained fluid if circumstances changed.

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There are signs of dialogue.

Separate indications suggested that the White House was preparing for a possible summit. Kelly McKeague, director of the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, said the White House had asked what measures could be taken if Trump and Kim reached an agreement. McKeague said returning remains of Korean War dead held by North Korea and resuming joint field searches, last conducted in 2005, could help.

McKeague compared the situation with preparations before the 2018 Singapore summit. Trump and Kim later met three times during Trump’s first term, in Singapore in June 2018, Hanoi in February 2019 and Panmunjom in June 2019. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Seoul and Washington remained open to dialogue with North Korea and were coordinating closely on policy.

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The two countries have consistently maintained that they are open to dialogue with North Korea and are maintaining close communication and coordination on overall North Korea policy, including efforts to resume dialogue.