The prospect of a fourth summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is gaining traction ahead of the Apec summit in late October, observers say, amid signs that both sides may be testing the waters for a return to high-level nuclear diplomacy. AdvertisementSpeculation intensified after North Korea ’s vice-foreign minister, Kim Son‑gyong, travelled to New York last week – the first visit by a senior North Korean diplomat since 2019 – to lead Pyongyang’s delegation at the UN General Assembly. Trump has described the North as a “nuclear power” with “a lot of nuclear weapons”, even as Washington and Seoul maintain their goal of the “complete denuclearisation” of North Korea. North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un (left) with US President Donald Trump during their first summit in Singapore in June 2018. Photo: AFPTrump and Kim met three times – including two summits in Singapore in June 2018 and Vietnam in February 2019, which collapsed over disagreements regarding nuclear disarmament.