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South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump will be visiting South Korea on June 29–30 for a bilateral summit with President Moon Jae-in. A senior government official also said a possible visit to the DMZ by Trump during his visit is “under consideration.”

Blue House Spokesperson Ko Min-jung said on June 24 that Trump “is paying an official visit to South Korea for two days from June 29 to 30.”

“He will arrive in South Korea on the afternoon on June 29, and the summit will be taking place at the Blue House on June 30,” she said.

Trump’s visit is to be his second, after a previous one in November 2017. With the visit taking place at a time when Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have recently been exchanging letters and a North Korea-China summit has just taken place, observers are watching closely to see if any breakthroughs can be made toward the Korean Peninsula’s denuclearization.

Foreign news outlets predicted Trump will visit the DMZ during his stay. While he previously planned for a DMZ trip during his November 2017 visit at Moon’s suggestion, the event was canceled due to heavy fog.

“My understanding is that [a DMZ visit by Trump] is under consideration,” said a senior government official.

Regarding the possibility of a trilateral meeting with North Korea at the DMZ, the Blue House said, “There are no plans for a South Korea-North Korea-US summit during President Trump’s visit.”

By Seong Yeon-cheol and Lee Wan, staff reporters

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