Important meetings happening today not just in Tokyo but also in Pyongyang.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in North Korea for the second time in a matter of weeks... for meeting with officials there presumably to get ready for President Trump's meeting with Kim Jong-un.
Last time Pompeo went to the North it was in secret, but this trip was announced by President Trump himself.
Our correspondent at South Korea's unification ministry,... Oh Jung-hee, is on the line with more.
Jung-hee, Mike Pompeo is in Pyongyang again. Have we learned anything about what he's been doing, who he's meeting with? And when are we going to hear more about plans for the summit?
Hi, Devin.
We are now hearing that U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with North Korea's Kim Yong-chol today.
Kim Yong-chol is a close political aide to Kim Jong-un... and was Mike Pompeo's direct counterpart for talks over the North Korea-U.S. summit when Pompeo was head of the CIA.
As for now, it's only known that Pompeo and Kim Yong-chol promised to continue joint efforts for peace on the Korean Peninsula.
I will be providing you with updates as more details emerge.
This is Secretary Pompeo's second visit to North Korea in just about a month,... and many believe this could be sign that new progress has been made regarding the first-ever summit between the leaders of North Korea and the United States.
And, noting what President Trump has said,... it seems likely that the date and location of the Pyongyang-Washington summit could be announced soon.
"We have our meeting scheduled. We have our meeting set. The location is picked. The time and date, everything is picked. And we look forward to have a great success. We think relationships are building with North Korea. We'll see how it all works out. Maybe it will, maybe it won't. But it can be a great thing for North Korea, South Korea, Japan and the entire world. We hope it all works out."
Jung-hee, the understanding is that Pompeo is in the North to finalize the agenda for the scheduled North Korea-U.S. summit.
One thing President Trump wants to talk about, of course, is the issue of the three American detainees.
Can we expect any progress on that front?
Well, when asked whether the three Americans detained in North Korea would be released,... President Trump said related news would come soon,... adding that it would be a great thing if they were to come home.
Hopes are high that the three Americans could return to the U.S. with Pompeo.
And that's especially because, in contrast to Pompeo's last Pyongyang visit that was completely secret,... this visit involves a couple of American reporters -- raising the prospect that the Trump administration might want to create a dramatic scene.
On his way to Pyongyang, Pompeo told reporters... he had not yet received a commitment from the regime that it will release the detainees.
But he added he will bring up the issue,... saying he hopes Pyongyang will (quote) "do
