President Donald Trump welcomes Republic of Korea President Moon Jae-in to the White House on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. Trump and Moon are meeting to discuss developments in the proposed meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
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President Donald Trump suggested that the scheduled summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could be pushed back to a later date, according to USA Today.
Speaking during a meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the White House on Tuesday, Trump emphasized the uncertainty surrounding the situation.
"If it doesn't happen, maybe it will happen at a later date," Trump said.
What's the story?
Trump was meeting with Moon to discuss strategy ahead of a planned June 12 meeting between Trump and Kim, set to take place in Singapore.
Shortly after the date and location for the summit was agreed to, North Korea began sending signals that it was not willing to go forward with the summit without additional concessions from the U.S. and South Korea, including the end of joint military exercises.
"You never know about deals," Trump said. "I've made a lot of deals. You never really know."
Still, South Korean national security adviser Chung Eui-yong said they believe there is a "99.9 percent chance" that the meeting will happen as scheduled.
Another issue threatening to derail the talks is denuclearization. North Korea's First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kim Kye Gwan, said that demands for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons could be cause to cancel the meeting.
The vice minister said North Korea is not willing to give up its nuclear weapons in exchange for a trade relationship with the U.S.
Changing their mind?
North Korea, back in March, signaled a willingness to denuclearize and to suspend nuclear and missile tests during negotiations.
"The North Korean side clearly stated its willingness to denuclearize," a statement from President Moon's office read. "It made it clear that it would have no reason to keep nuclear weapons if the military threat to the North was eliminated and its security guaranteed.
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