Kim told South Korean officials last month that he was committed to denuclearization and hoping to meet with Trump as soon as possible. The US president accepted the invite, but there was no direct word from Pyongyang on its offer.

US media outlets reported over the weekend that North Korea has told the US it is ready to talk about giving up its nuclear weapons program. US Central Intelligence Agency chief Mike Pompeo, who has been tapped to be the new US secretary of state, has been leading back-channel meetings with the North Koreans in preparation for the summit, the reports said.

The venue and date of the meeting have yet to be set.

Kim made an unannounced visit to Beijing last month to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and is due to hold an April 27 summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the southern side of the inter-Korean Demilitarized Zone.

Many analysts remain skeptical that North Korea will ever denuclearize. Some have raised the possibility the regime will demand concessions Washington is unwilling to make, such as the withdrawal of US troops from South Korea. Others have pointed to past denuclearization-for-aid agreements that ultimately collapsed because of what they say was North Korea's cheating. (Yonhap)