U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that progress is "being made" in negotiations with Pyongyang and he saw a "decent chance" of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.
"North Korea relationship is best it has ever been with U.S. ... Decent chance of Denuclearization," Trump tweeted.
Washington and Pyongyang have regained momentum in their talks on denuclearization as the White House announced over a week ago that the second summit between Trump and Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, "will take place near the end of February."
"I look forward to seeing Kim Jong Un shortly. Progress being made-big difference!" The U.S. president wrote in a separate tweet.
Trump's words came one day after a U.S. senior security official publicly doubted Pyongyang's willingness to denuclearize.
"We currently assess that North Korea will seek to retain its Weapons of Mass destruction (WMD) capabilities and is unlikely to completely give up its nuclear weapons," said Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats in a congressional testimony on Tuesday.
The meeting between Trump and Kim Jong Un, if held as scheduled, will be the two leaders' second face-to-face encounter following their landmark summit in Singapore last June. Both sides have said they look forward to such a meeting.
During his Jan. 7-10 trip to China, his fourth visit to China in less than a year, Kim said that Pyongyang will make efforts for the second summit between DPRK and U.S. leaders to achieve results that will be welcomed by the international community. The DPRK leader also thanked China for its related efforts.
