North Korea starting to respect US – Trump

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is “starting to respect” the United States, President Donald Trump declared, even as Pyongyang revealed plans for its missile development Wednesday and Kim ordered a production boost.

Trump’s remarks, at a rally in Phoenix, came hours after Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said talks with the nuclear-armed North over its banned weapons programmes might be possible “in the near future”.

The comments are a marked contrast to the rhetoric of recent weeks, when Trump spoke of raining “fire and fury” on the North, and come as tensions have eased after Kim pulled back from a plan to send a salvo of missiles towards the US Pacific territory of Guam.

But Washington also imposed new sanctions on Chinese and Russian firms suspected of doing business with the North.

Pyongyang, meanwhile, revealed significant technological advances in its missile programmes and ambitious plans to further improve its capabilities.