Over Easter weekend, Donald Trump sent his CIA director and nominee for secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, on a secret meeting with Kim Jong Un. Trump intends Pompeo to replace Rex W. Tillerson, who Trump disliked and had little trust in, thus firing Tillerson after accepting Kim's meeting invitation. The two had openly disagreed about opening a diplomatic channel to negotiate with North Korea, although Trump is now open to negotiation with Pompeo in charge. James R. Clapper negotiated the release of two other Americans in 2014, but three Korean-Americans are still currently being detained in North Korea. Some are surprised Pompeo did not return with any visible concessions, specifically regarding the release of the three Americans. No date has been confirmed for the upcoming meeting between Kim and Trump as they have yet to determine a location. Trump has been in direct contact with Kim, and Pompeo has maintained contact with North Korean representatives and South Korean intelligence. On Pompeo's mission to North Korea, Trump has stated that it "went smoothly and a good relationship was formed", and that "denuclearization will be a great thing for World, but also for North Korea!"
Because the details of the communication between Trump and Kim are so obscure, I am unsure what to think of this, though I don't trust Trump and Pompeo to negotiate properly themselves without supervision. Hopefully his alleged "good relationship" with Kim is maintained when he meets with Kim himself. Some have expressed concerns over the CIA taking charge of orchestrating such a meeting; do you believe we have reasons for concern over so much control from the CIA? Why do you think Trump is keeping these meetings as secretive as possible? How successful will Trump be in negotiating with Kim?
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/18/world/asia/trump-pompeo-north-korea.html
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