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US President Donald Trump speaks at a press conference after his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on June 12 in Singapore. (AFP/Yonhap News)

US President Donald Trump said he believes North Korean leader will start the denuclearization process “right away,” adding that he plans to halt joint South Korea-US military exercises now that the process is under way.

Trump’s remarks came in a press conference shortly after the first-ever North Korea-US summit in Singapore on June 12. Beginning at 4:16 pm and lasting for an hour and five minutes, the press conference saw Trump offering his reflections on the summit and answering questions from reporters at the Capella hotel summit venue on Sentosa island.

The key development from the news conference was Trump’s reference to the possibility of downscaling joint military exercises. Calling war games “very expensive” and “provocative,” Trump declared, “Under the circumstances that we are negotiating a very comprehensive, complete deal [with North Korea], I think it’s inappropriate to be having war games.”

“Six and a half hours [is] a long time for these big massive planes to be flying to South Korea to practice and then drop bombs all over the place and then go back to Guam,” he said, adding that it was “very expensive.”

Discussing the benefits of halting exercises, Trump said, “Number one, we save money, a lot, and number two, it really is something that I think they [the North Koreans] very much appreciated.”

Trump’s remarks signal that he hopes to maintain the friendly mood with Pyongyang reap economic rewards in terms of reduced defense spending now the two sides have begun dialogue in earnest toward building a new relationship, achieving denuclearization, and establishing a peace regime. They could also be seen as meaning the US has agreed to North Korea’s longstanding demands for a “suspension of hostile activities.”

Trump further hinted that downscaling of the US Forces Korea troop presence could be on the long-term agenda.

“[Reducing USFK numbers] is not part of the equation right now,” he said, before adding, “At some point I hope it will be.”

Trump went on to say that downscaling USFK could reduce military expenses.

Trump’s emphasis on “peace” and “life” while discussing the measures drew some attention.

“The [Korean] War never ended to this day,” he said.

“But now, we can all have hope that it will soon end, and it will. It will soon end,” he continued. At the same time, he made no direct reference to a declaration ending the war.

Trump was also cautious when asked about the military outcome if North Korea fails to honor its commitment.

“I don’t want to be threatening,” he replied.

“Seoul has 28 million people, think of that,” he added, noting that “you could have lost 20 million people, 30 million people.” Last year, Trump made military threats against North Korea, warning of “fire and fury.”

Trump actively stressed that Kim Jong-un’s commitment to denuclearization was firm enough to allow the US to pursue the measures he discussed. While the joint statement signed by the two leaders refers to “complete denuclearization” rather than the “complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization” demanded by the US, his remarks suggested there was no major difference.

When asked about the omission of CVID from the statement, Trump replied, “I don’t think it can be any more plain.”

“We talk about the guarantees. And we talk about unwavering commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” he said of the statement.

Trump stressed that he “believe[s Kim] is going to live up to that document.”

“Chairman Kim is on his way back to North Korea, and I know for a fact that as soon as he arrives, he’s going to start a process that’s going to make a lot of people very happy and very safe,” he added.

He also said follow-up negotiations led by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo would begin next week.

Trump additionally noted several times that Kim had pledged to dismantle a major missile engine testing site. In an interview with ABC just before the news conference, he said Kim was “de-nuking the whole place [North Korea].” At the same time, he also made it clear that complete denuclearization of North Korea would take some time, adding that the US would proceed as quickly as possible.

By Hwang Joon-bum and Noh Ji-won, reporting from Singapore

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