North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ordered preparations for a second summit with US President Donald Trump, saying he’ll “wait with patience and in good faith” to work toward a common goal, the North’s state media reported yesterday.

Despite Mr Kim’s determination for another meeting with Mr Trump, the two remain at odds over fundamental issues.

Experts say a major sticking point is what denuclearisation steps Mr Kim should take to move forward stalled nuclear negotiations and what rewards Mr Trump should provide to push Mr Kim to take those measures.

The Korean Central News Agency said Mr Kim received a letter from Mr Trump from a North Korean envoy who met the US president in Washington last week. After meeting Kim Yong-chol, Mr Trump said he and Kim Jong-un will probably meet around the end of February but did not say exactly when and where the summit would take place.

Mr Trump tweeted yesterday that “I expect another good meeting soon, much potential!”

Yesterday’s report said Mr Kim expressed satisfaction with his envoy’s meeting with Mr Trump and spoke highly of the US president for “expressing his unusual determination and will for the settlement of the issue with a great interest in the second summit”.

“We will wait with patience and in good faith and, together with the US, advance step by step toward the goal to be reached by the two countries,” Mr Kim was quoted as saying.

Kim also “set forth tasks and orientation for making good technical preparations” for the second summit high on the agenda, KCNA said.

Nuclear negotiations have been stuck since Mr Kim and Mr Trump met in Singapore last June for their first summit, which ended with Mr Kim’s vague denuclearisation pledge. A summit accord also stated that the United States and North Korea will commit to establishing new relations and join efforts to build a lasting and stable peace on the Korean Peninsula.

The strongest step Mr Kim could promise during a second summit may be abandoning his long-range missile programme targeting the US mainland. That step, if realised, would trigger a strong backlash from many in South Korea and Japan, which are within the striking distance of North Korea’s short- and medium-range missiles.

In return, Mr Kim is seeking to get UN sanctions lifted. He also wants better relations with the United States to try to revive his country’s moribund economy to pave the way for a prolonged rule by his family, experts say.

North Korea observers say Vietnam is likely to be chosen as a venue for a second summit, but there has been no official confirmation.

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