US President Donald Trump has heaped praise on Kim Jong Un and revealed he wants North Korea to be "one of the most successful nations in the world".
Mr Trump’s positive remarks come after Mr Kim said he is open to a third summit with the President.
He had also set a deadline of the end of 2019 for Washington to offer mutually acceptable terms for an agreement to salvage the high-stakes nuclear diplomacy, the country's state-run media said Saturday.
Reacting to Mr Kim’s comments, Mr Trump said their relationship was “excellent”.
The 72-year-old tweeted: “I agree with Kim Jong Un of North Korea that our personal relationship remains very good, perhaps the term excellent would be even more accurate, and that a third summit would be good in that we fully understand where we each stand.
“North Korea has tremendous potential for extraordinary growth, economic success and riches under the leadership of Chairman Kim.
“I look forward to the day, which could be soon, when Nuclear Weapons and Sanctions can be removed, and then watching North Korea become one of the most successful nations of the world!”
Mr Kim said he hoped to meet the US leader again during a speech on Friday, which came hours after Mr Trump had met with South Korean president Moon Jae-in.
The North Korean leader said: “We of course place importance on resolving problems through dialogue and negotiations. But US-style dialogue of unilaterally pushing its demands doesn't fit us, and we have no interest in it.”
But he said his personal relationship with Mr Trump remains good and that they could exchange letters at "any time".
In their first summit last June in Singapore, Mr Trump and Mr Kim issued a vague statement calling for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula without describing when and how it would occur.
