At his 4am press conference, Trump says he did bring up the issue of human rights with Kim Jong Un. He said it was brief compared to the issue of denuclearization, but it was discussed:
Asked about human rights in NK, Trump immediately pivots to talking about remains of American soldiers who died during Korean War, then adds that human rights were "discussed relatively briefly compared to denuclearization."
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 12, 2018
Praises Kim as "very smart, a very good negotiator." pic.twitter.com/RrCsrEgcM3
Trump was pressed on it by ABC’s Jonathan Karl, and Trump suggested that he believes Un wants to change in this regard as well and that it’s something that needs to happen to usher in the new era of North Korea:
Pressed on horrible human rights situation in North Korea and whether he wants to do anything about it, Trump acknowledges "it's rough" there but adds, "it's rough in a lot of places." pic.twitter.com/6RN7drMO7s
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 12, 2018
I’m glad to hear that Trump did broach the subject of human rights and that he feels Kim wants to change on that issue too. But I would like to see some progress on that front before Trump brings Un to the White House.
That said I am glad that Trump and Kim committed to denuclearization of N. Korea in writing. I think it’s definitely a great place to start, but of course it’s only a start and needs verifiable action before we can even begin to call this a successful endeavor.
However, considering we were talking war just a few months ago, this is a pretty amazing step in the right direction. Despite what Trump critics may say, he definitely deserves credit for bringing us to this point and doing something his 2016 critics would have NEVER predicted.