President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that he thought there was a “good chance” three Americans held prisoner in North Korea would be released.
“We have been talking about them, we are negotiating now,” Trump told a reporter who asked if the President would insist on the prisoners’ release as a condition of his upcoming meeting with North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un. The comment came during a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe.
“We are doing our very best. As you know, they have been there a long time and it’s harsh treatment.”
“I think there’s a good chance of doing it,” he added. “We’re having very good dialogue. We will keep you informed. But we are in there and we are working very hard on that.”
In general, he said later, “this should have been taken care of by past administrations, when they were not nearly so far along.”
