US President Donald Trump says his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vietnam failed to reach agreement due to North Korean demands to lift punishing US-led sanctions. The two leaders failed to reach an agreement at their second summit in Vietnam, but talks between the two nations will continue in the future. "Basically, they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety, but we couldn't do that....we had to walk away from it," Trump told reporters after summit talks were cut short in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi. Trump and Kim departed the hotel where they've been holding summit negotiations far earlier than planned Thursday. A joint agreement signing ceremony was scrapped. Trump said he felt "it wasn't a good thing to be signing anything" following his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. "Sometimes you have to walk, and this was one of those times," he added. Trump said Kim was willing to give up some of his country's nuclear sites "but not the ones we wanted." "We couldn't give up all sanctions for that," Trump said. Both Trump and Kim had earlier expressed hope for progress on improving relations and on the key issue of denuclearisation, in their talks in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi. But in a change of schedule, the White House said Trump's media conference planned for after the summit was moved forward by almost two hours to 2.00 pm (0600 AEDT). News of the change in schedule sent South Korea's stock market and currency lower. Earlier Kim and Trump, seated across from each other at a conference table, appeared confident of progress. "If I'm not willing to do that, I won't be here right now," Kim told reporters through an interpreter, when asked if he was ready to give up his nuclear weapons. Trump, responding to that, said: "That might be the best answer you've ever heard." Kim did not elaborate on what "denuclearisation" would entail, but asked if he was ready to take concrete steps, Kim said they had just been talking about that. "Hope you give us more time to talk. Even a minute is precious," he told reporters. While the United States was demanding North Korea give up all of its nuclear and missile programmes, the North wanted to see the removal of a US nuclear umbrella for its Asian allies such as South Korea and Japan. North Korea has conducted no nuclear or intercontinental ballistic missile tests since late 2017. Kim, asked by a reporter if he was confident about a deal, said, through an interpreter: "It's too early to tell, but I wouldn't say I'm pessimistic. For what I feel right now, I do have a feeling that good results will come out," he said, in what was believed to be his first ever response to a foreign journalist. Trump reiterated North Korea's potential, if a deal can be done, saying the isolated country could be an "economic powerhouse". Australian Associated Press
US President Donald Trump (R) and North Korea's Kim Jong-un (L) during their meeting on Thursday.
US President Donald Trump says his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vietnam failed to reach agreement due to North Korean demands to lift punishing US-led sanctions.
The two leaders failed to reach an agreement at their second summit in Vietnam, but talks between the two nations will continue in the future.
"Basically, they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety, but we couldn't do that....we had to walk away from it," Trump told reporters after summit talks were cut short in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi.
Trump and Kim departed the hotel where they've been holding summit negotiations far earlier than planned Thursday.
A joint agreement signing ceremony was scrapped.
Trump said he felt "it wasn't a good thing to be signing anything" following his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
"Sometimes you have to walk, and this was one of those times," he added.
Trump said Kim was willing to give up some of his country's nuclear sites "but not the ones we wanted."
"We couldn't give up all sanctions for that," Trump said.
Both Trump and Kim had earlier expressed hope for progress on improving relations and on the key issue of denuclearisation, in their talks in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi.
But in a change of schedule, the White House said Trump's media conference planned for after the summit was moved forward by almost two hours to 2.00 pm (0600 AEDT).
News of the change in schedule sent South Korea's stock market and currency lower.
Earlier Kim and Trump, seated across from each other at a conference table, appeared confident of progress.
"If I'm not willing to do that, I won't be here right now," Kim told reporters through an interpreter, when asked if he was ready to give up his nuclear weapons.
Trump, responding to that, said: "That might be the best answer you've ever heard."
Kim did not elaborate on what "denuclearisation" would entail, but asked if he was ready to take concrete steps, Kim said they had just been talking about that.
"Hope you give us more time to talk. Even a minute is precious," he told reporters.
While the United States was demanding North Korea give up all of its nuclear and missile programmes, the North wanted to see the removal of a US nuclear umbrella for its Asian allies such as South Korea and Japan.
North Korea has conducted no nuclear or intercontinental ballistic missile tests since late 2017.
Kim, asked by a reporter if he was confident about a deal, said, through an interpreter:
"It's too early to tell, but I wouldn't say I'm pessimistic. For what I feel right now, I do have a feeling that good results will come out," he said, in what was believed to be his first ever response to a foreign journalist.
Trump reiterated North Korea's potential, if a deal can be done, saying the isolated country could be an "economic powerhouse".
