Former professional basketball player Dennis Rodman wants President Donald Trump to make him a peace envoy to North Korea, he told The Guardian.
Rodman, who has traveled to the Communist regime multiple times, said U.S. officials blocked his latest attempt to visit North Korea amid increasing tensions between the countries.
“Basically, they said it’s not a good time right now,” Rodman told The Guardian.
Rodman insisted that his visit would lead to peace.
“If I can go back over there … you’ll see me talking to him, and sitting down and having dinner, a glass of wine, laughing and doing my thing. I guess things will settle down a bit and everybody can rest at ease,” Rodman said. “I think a lot of people around the world … want me to go just to see if I can do something.”
Rodman, who calls Kim Jong Un a “friend for life,” referred to the North Korean dictator as “the Marshal” during the interview, according to The Guardian.
He said he has sought to talk to Trump about North Korea for months.
“I’ve been trying to tell Donald since day one: ‘Come talk to me, man … I’ll tell you what the Marshal wants more than anything … It’s not even that much,’” Rodman said.
However, when The Guardian asked Rodman what the dictator wants, he replied, “I ain’t telling you … I will tell him [Trump] when I see him.”
The communist Kim regime has been accused of human rights abuses, including torturing and imprisoning defectors. North Korea is often referred to as the Hermit Kingdom because it is so isolated from the rest of the world.
Rodman has faced criticism for shying away from the regime’s brutality.
“I don’t even try to think about [the bad things],” he told The Guardian.
Since becoming president, Trump has not commented on Rodman’s visits to North Korea. However, in 2013, Trump praised Rodman’s visit that year as “smart.”
“The world is blowing up around us. Maybe Dennis is a lot better than what we have,” Trump said at the time.
Rodman was once a contestant on Trump’s TV program, "The Apprentice."
