Woodward's New Book 'Rage' Interview Reveals
"It Takes 1 Second to Confirm Chemistry with Kim Jong-un"
Also Discloses US New Nuclear Weapon Development
To South Korea and NATO: "We Are the Suckers"
[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] It has been reported that U.S. President Donald Trump compared North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un’s relationship with nuclear weapons to a 'house that he loves too much to sell.'
In 2017, when tensions between North Korea and the U.S. reached their peak, it was revealed that the U.S. developed a nuclear weapon that had never existed before. Additionally, claims were made that President Trump referred to the U.S. as a 'sucker' while mentioning South Korea and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
On the 9th (local time), U.S. media obtained and reported on contents from Bob Woodward’s new book "Rage," the Watergate investigative journalist.
Set to be published on the 15th, the book contains interviews Woodward conducted with President Trump 18 times from December last year until July, as well as 27 letters sent by Kim Jong-un to Trump, drawing significant attention.
In an interview with Woodward, President Trump described Kim Jong-un’s relationship with nuclear weapons as "It’s really like someone who loves a house. They cannot sell it." He used a real estate metaphor, his area of expertise, to express Kim’s connection to nuclear weapons.
Regarding criticism of the North Korea-U.S. summits, Trump emphasized to Woodward, "I met, but I didn’t give up anything."
This was a rebuttal to criticisms about negotiations with North Korea, the postponement and reduction of joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises during the process, and of course, giving Kim Jong-un more time to continue developing nuclear weapons.
Trump told Woodward that he did not consider former President Barack Obama smart and said that Kim Jong-un thought of Obama as an "asshole," contrasting the Obama administration’s 'strategic patience' policy toward North Korea with his own approach.
Trump also reportedly told Woodward that after meeting Kim Jong-un for the first time at the first North Korea-U.S. summit in Singapore, he judged Kim to have "more than just intelligence."
Trump boasted to Woodward that Kim Jong-un gave him a vivid explanation about the killing of his uncle Jang Song-thaek and that Jang told him everything. This is interpreted as Kim directly revealing the full story of Jang Song-thaek’s arrest and execution to Trump.
Regarding the 'chemistry' between the two, Trump said, "When you meet a woman, you know in a second whether things will work out or not. It doesn’t take 10 minutes or 6 weeks. It doesn’t even take a second."
The Development of Nuclear Weapons No One Else Had Was Also Mentioned
Recalling the 2017 North Korean nuclear crisis when war was imminent, Trump told Woodward, "I developed a nuclear weapons system in this country that no one else had before. We have things you have never seen or heard of."
He added, "We have things that Putin (Russian President) or Xi (Jinping, Chinese President) have never heard of before. What we have is unbelievable."
Woodward later confirmed through anonymous sources that the U.S. military possesses secret new weapon systems, and these sources were very surprised that Trump publicly disclosed this.
Mentioning South Korea and NATO, "America Is a Sucker"... Criticism of Military Generals’ Alliance Perspective
In his new book, Woodward quoted a senior official saying that Trump harshly criticized his military aides, saying, "My generals are a bunch of weak people," because they cared more about alliances than trade agreements.
Trump also told Woodward about alliances with NATO and South Korea, "This is a terrible deal. They make a lot of money, and it costs us $10 billion. We are suckers."
Regarding South Korea, Trump told Woodward, "We are protecting you. We are keeping you alive."
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