US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he hoped to accelerate a second summit between Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump as he kicked off an Asian trip Saturday that will feature a meeting with North Korea's leader.
Pompeo arrived in Tokyo on the first leg of a tour that will take him to Pyongyang for a fourth time as the contours of a possibly historic US-North Korea deal take shape.
Speaking on the plane on the way from the United States, Pompeo said his aim was to "develop sufficient trust" between the historic foes to inch towards peace.
"Then we are also going to set up the next summit," said Pompeo.
However, he played down expectations for a major breakthrough, saying: "I doubt we will get it nailed but begin to develop options for both location and timing for when Chairman Kim will meet with the president again."
"Maybe we will get further than that."
Speaking ahead of his talks, Pompeo said it was important for him before travelling to Pyongyang that the two allies were "fully in sync."
Pompeo did not discuss the possible outlines of a deal, saying only that his "mission is to make sure that we understand what each side is truly trying to achieve."
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