The National Intelligence Service (NIS) assessed that a summit between Kim Jong-un, the North Korean state affairs commission chairman, and U.S. President Donald Trump is highly likely and could be pursued after the U.S.-South Korea joint exercise in March 2026.
Park Seon-won, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker, and Lee Seong-gwon, a People Power Party lawmaker, who are the ruling and opposition secretaries of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee, said the National Intelligence Service (NIS) reported this at a parliamentary audit on the 4th.
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said, "Although a North Korea-U.S. leaders' meeting on the sidelines of the much-anticipated Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju fell through, multiple channels have confirmed behind-the-scenes signs that (North Korea) has laid the groundwork for talks with the United States."
It added, "A subtle shift has been detected in North Korea's rhetoric as a nuclear-armed state," and "since the Supreme People's Assembly, where Kim Jong-un hinted at conditional talks with the United States, he has refrained from direct remarks about nuclear armament and appears to be calibrating the tone."
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said, "In particular, with U.S. President Donald Trump expressing willingness to meet Kim Jong-un during his Asia tour, we detected that, considering the opening for dialogue, (North Korea) agonized until the last minute over Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui's visits to China and Russia," adding, "We assess that Kim Jong-un has the intent for dialogue with the United States and will move to make contact with the United States once conditions are in place."
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) also said, "We see as one piece of evidence the recent significant accumulation in North Korea of information about international and North Korea-related workers inside the United States and about various leading figures."
It went on, "On the basis of its closeness with Russia and improved North Korea-China ties, it is pushing North Korea-U.S. relations, and perhaps after the U.S.-South Korea joint exercise in March 2026 it will again pursue a North Korea-U.S. summit."