Trump leaves for Hanoi for his second summit with Kim Jong-un

US President Donald Trump Monday left for Hanoi for his second high profile summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during which the two leaders will have several rounds of discussions aimed at normalising ties and complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

President Trump and Chairman Kim are scheduled to meet in Hanoi, Vietnam on February 27 and 28.

During their two days of talks, the two leaders are expected to have several rounds of discussions in multiple settings, including a one-on-one, during which they are likely to review the progress made after their first historic summit in Singapore last summer.

Ahead of his trip, Trump said he shared a great relationship with the North Korean leader.

"I think we can have a very good summit. I think we'll have a very tremendous summit. We want denuclearisation, and I think he'll have a country that will set a lot of records for speed in terms of an economy," he told a meeting of governors at the White House.

In a tweet, Trump described the summit with Chairman Kim as very important.

"With complete denuclearisation, North Korea will rapidly become an Economic Powerhouse. Without it, just more of the same. Chairman Kim will make a wise decision!" he said.

"We both expect a continuation of the progress made at first summit in Singapore," Trump tweeted Sunday.

Trump and Kim had their historic first meeting in Singapore in June last year, where they agreed on denuclearisation of North Korea.

North Korea has long insisted it will not give up its nuclear arsenal unless the US removes its troops from South Korea.

"...I tell Chairman Kim, he has a chance to have a country that is so vibrant, economically. Maybe one of the most in the world. He's got a location that's unbelievable. As a real-estate person, I've always done very well with location.

"But he's right between China, Russia, and then on the other side, South Korea. So they can't touch each other unless they go through North Korea," Trump said.

"I think it can be, really, one of the great - one of the great financial and economic countries anywhere in the world. So I tell him that. I said, 'But you can't do that if you're going to keep nuclear (weapons). If you do nuclear, that can't ever happen'," Trump said.

Trump reiterated that he was having a great relationship with Kim.

Trump said he was "not in a rush" to denuclearise North Korea.

"We see eye to eye, I believe. But you'll be seeing it more and more over the next couple of days, one way or the other. What's going to happen? I can't tell you. I think eventually it would, but I can't tell you. And I'm not in a rush. I don't want to rush anybody. I just don't want testing. As long as there's no testing, we're happy," he said.

Trump said he had done really something, very special with respect to North Korea.

The US insists it will accept nothing less than complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.