Trump may meet South Korea's Moon before summit with North Korean leader Kim

US President Donald Trumpat a joint press conference with South Korea's President Moon Jae In at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea on Nov 7, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS

WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - United States President Donald Trump may meet with South Korea's president before his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to seek a denuclearisation deal, a White House official said on Wednesday (April 25).

South Korean President Moon Jae In is due to meet Kim on Friday, and Trump has said he could have talks with the North Korean leader in late May or June.

White House national security adviser John Bolton spoke with his South Korean counterpart, Chung Eui Yong, on Wednesday and they discussed "looking into a meeting between the two presidents that would take place before the United States-North Korea summit", the official said.

The United States is pressing North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and says it will keep up a policy of "maximum pressure" on Pyongyang through sanctions to achieve that goal.

Moon said last week that North Korea had expressed a commitment to "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean peninsula, and Pyongyang said on Saturday it would immediately suspend nuclear and missile tests.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.