Korea's Kim picks potatoes over Pompeo meeting?

World

Published: 2018-07-10 14:38

Last Updated: 2024-03-28 08:28


Jong Un was busy visiting a potato farm to meet the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Jong Un was  busy visiting a potato farm to meet the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un chose to visit a potato farm instead of potentially meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this week, Pyongyang's state media reported on Tuesday.

After a seven-day absence from the headlines, Jong Un was back in the spotlight, visiting the Junghung potato farm in the far-flung Samjiyon county, on the border with China.

Pompeo arrived in Pyongyang on Friday to discuss the denuclearisation deal discussed between US President Donald Trump and his Korean counterpart during last month's historic summit between the two countries.

Previous reports from the White House suggested that Pompeo would be meeting the Korean leader during his visit to the East Asian country, however, the US official only met with Kim Yong Chol, Vice Chairman of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party Central Committee.

The official news agency KCNA did not specify which day Jong Un made his trip to the farm.
KCNA covered the Korean leader’s field trip with multiple reports, and in more detail than they usually do for his other "field guidance" visits.

During his visit, Kim instructed staff to plant high-yield varieties and to introduce “various species good to taste and ensure the quality of processed potato foods in production and thus raise the quality of potato production."