Trump calls Kim Jong Un a ‘friend’ and plays down N Korea’s nuclear arsenal

Donald Trump described Kim Jong Un as ‘a friend’ and downplayed concerns about North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, saying ‘as long as I’m around, he’s going to be fine’. He made these remarks in Washington after a reporter asked why North Korea could have nuclear weapons but Iran could not. Trump also said Kim Jong Un prefers him over others and that North Korea’s nuclear capacity is ‘pretty large’ but not like the US. South Korea’s Defense Minister estimated North Korea has between 80 and 120 nuclear warheads, a figure higher than Trump’s recent assertion of 57.