US NewsJilted by Trump, Xi and Kim Seek Upper Hand Before G-20 Summit

A group of university students in Pyongyang, North Korea.

A guest at a table outside a restaurant in Pyongyang.

Men go about their day in Pyongyang.

Soldiers of the Korean People's Army (KPA) watch fireworks marking the July 4 launch of the Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile, in Pyongyang.

A group of youths outside Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang.

KPA soldiers attend a lecture at the Korean Revolutionary Museum in Pyongyang.

A man and his pet dog near Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang.

People bow before the statues of presidents Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on Mansu Hill, on the 23rd anniversary of Kim Il Sung's demise in Pyongyang.

Facing Intensifying Confrontation With Iran, Trump Has Few Appealing Options

President Trump’s last-minute decision to pull back from a retaliatory strike on Iran underscored the absence of appealing options available to him as Tehran races toward its next big challenge to the United States: building up and further enriching its stockpile of nuclear fuel. 

President Trump meets with Chinese President Xi while attending G 20 summit ; Hudson Institute Center for Chinese Strategy director Michael Pillsbury weighs in. In the meeting, Trump and Xi were expected to focus on issues including trade and a dispute over Huawei Technologies. "We've had an

Only days before the summit in Argentina, President Trump said current tariff levels on 0bn (£157bn) of Chinese imports would rise as planned. He also threatened tariffs on 7bn of other Chinese exports to the US. Then, just before taking off for Argentina, President Trump told reporters

Taekwondo athletes demonstrate moves for foreign journalists in Pyongyang.

A little girl in a traditional costume in Pyongyang.

People leave an assembly area after rehearsals for celebrations ahead of the "Day of the Sun" festival in Pyongyang.

Women at a parade for the "Day of the Sun" festival at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang.

Men take part in a tug-of-war as they celebrate May Day at the Pyongyang Thermal Power Complex.

Students at the Sci-Tech Complex in Pyongyang.

Nurses in the premature natal intensive care unit at the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital.

Revolutionary propaganda signage on display in Pyongyang.

A man paints a home on the outskirts of Pyongyang.

Love Letter Diplomacy May Help Drive Talks With North Korea

Interactions or negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang cannot simply be transactional—the process entails the good, the bad, and the ugly of any relationship. It means extra work is needed to cajole, explain, and patch up hurt feelings as needed. It means that the stakes are higher because if talks fail at the summit level, there is nowhere else to go. That is what makes the news that Trump had sent an “excellent” letter to Kim all the more important.

Workers guide cable onto a spooling machine at Pyongyang 326 Electric Wire Factory.

Workers at a pizzeria in Pyongyang.

Women at work in the fields in Pyongyang.

A man walks by the Grand People's Study House library in Pyongyang.

Men in business suits and military personnel attend a parade in Kim Il Sung Square.

Military officials salute during a patriotic concert at Pyongyang Arena.

Women dressed in military outfits perform during a parade at Kim Il Sung Square.

A woman sprays fertilizer in a greenhouse on the outskirts of Pyongyang.

‘She’s Not My Type’: Accused Again of Sexual Assault, Trump Resorts to Old Insult

President Trump on Monday again denied assaulting a columnist for Elle magazine in the dressing room of a high-end clothing store more than 20 years ago, countering her explosive accusation by asserting that he would not have assaulted her because “she’s not my type.” Mr. Trump said that E. Jean Carroll, who wrote for years for Elle magazine, was “lying” when she said that he threw her up against a wall and forced himself on her in the mid-1990s, and he insisted that he did not know her. “I’ll say it with great respect,” he said in an interview with The Hill, a Capitol Hill news organization. “No. 1, she’s not my type.

Children at a day care center on the outskirts of Pyongyang.

Students on a street in Pyongyang.

A crowded tram in Pyongyang.

A man gets a haircut at a salon in Pyongyang.

A woman feeds an elephant in Central Zoo in Pyongyang.

People swimming in a pool at Munsu Water Park in Pyongyang.

Workers sweep the floor in front of statues of former supreme leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Mansudae Art Studio in Pyongyang.

Workers on the streets of Pyongyang.

A man cycles past Kim Il Sung Square.

Cityscape of Pyongyang.

Housing in Pyongyang suburbs.

Men repair a truck carrying commuters to Pyongyang.

A guide at the Juche Tower in central Pyongyang.

Trump says migrant deaths wouldn't happen if Democrats would agree to 'right laws'

Photographs of the two migrants, lying face down near the bank of the river, has sparked new outrage and controversy over the current border crisis. Asked about the images, Trump suggested that if Congress fixed the laws, as he has demanded, such incidents would not happen. “People are running through the Rio Grande," he told reporters on the White House South Lawn, before leaving for Japan. If "we had the right laws ... people won’t come up and people won’t get killed.

Women in traditional attire at the 105th birth anniversary celebrations of the late supreme leader Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang.

Women cycle past a construction site on the outskirts of Hamhung, North Korea's second-largest city.

A class underway at Pyongyang Orphans' Secondary School.

People dance near the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium after the government announced a hydrogen bomb test two days earlier.

Members of the North Korean military rest on the banks of Yalu River in Sakchu county.

Was the Treaty of Versailles a Victory for Democracy?

June 28, 1919, dawned as a beautiful day; fair, with moderate winds, according to The New York Times. It was a perfect day to see a baseball game, and 28,000 did, going to the Polo Grounds to watch the Yankees and Red Sox split a doubleheader. 

A traffic policewoman at an intersection in Pyongyang.

Girls walk along on the banks of Yalu River in Sakchu county.

Men playing volleyball at the Munsu Water Park.

A North Korean family on the road in Hyangsan county in North Pyongan.

Residents of Pyongyang walk by a mosaic of late leader Kim Jong Il on the second anniversary of his death.

Retired military members in Pyongyang.

North Korean workers at a seafood factory in Rajin.

Veterans of the Korean War at a mass military parade to mark the 60th anniversary of the Armistice agreement.

North Korean seamstresses at the Sonbong Textile Factory inside the Rason Special Economic Zone.

North Korean nurses inside a maternity hospital in Pyongyang.

Dresses and suits in a dress shop in Pyongyang.

Off-duty traffic policemen lace up ice skates at a rink in Pyongyang.

A North Korean woman at the counter to the entrance of the Golden Lane bowling alley in Pyongyang.

School children attend an art class at the Mangyongdae Children's Palace in Pyongyang.

A North Korean bride and groom pose for a family photo in front of statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang.

North Korean school boys play with an Associated Press photographer's camera in front of statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang.

Painted Propaganda, showing North Korean children in armed services uniforms attacking U.S., Japanese and South Korean soldiers, at a Pyongyang kindergarten.

A park swing, made to look like the North Korean Unha-3 rocket, in Pyongyang.

North Korean soldiers work on a mountaintop ski slope construction site in Masik Pass.

A vendor is pictured in a shop in a residential complex on Ryomyong street in Pyongyang.

A man takes shelter in the rain next to propaganda billboards in the town of Samjiyon in Ryanggang province.

Statues of animals playing musical instruments stand along the roadside south of Samsu in Ryanggang province.

School children work to fix pot holes on a rural road in North Hamgyong province.

A man stands in front of a row of houses in the town of Kimchaek in North Hamgyong province.

The lobby of a hotel that accommodates foreign visitors in Chongjin.

A man sits by a cooking fire he built to roast potatoes and chicken in the town of Samjiyon in Ryanggang province.

An exclamation point punctuates a long propaganda slogan in a field in North Hamgyong province.

People rest next to the railroad tracks in a town in North Hamgyong province.

Boys play soccer in the town of Hyesan in North Korea's Ryanggang province.

Young North Koreans picnicking on the beach in Wonsan.

North Korean farmers with their cattle near the town of Hyesan, in Ryanggang province.

A village in North Korea's North Hamgyong province.

On average, North Koreans are two inches (five centimeters) shorter than South Koreans, according to researchers at the Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, South Korea. The World Food Programme attributes this to poor diet during childhood. According to the organization, the growth of over a quarter of the children is stunted due to food shortages.

On Aug. 15, 2015, the country pulled back its clocks by 30 minutes, resetting to GMT +8:30 and creating its own time zone-  called "Pyongyang Time." In 2018, it reverted to the same time zone as South Korea from May 5 on, setting it to GMT +9.

On its independence in 1948, North Korea was mostly recognized by Communist Bloc countries. In 1958, Algeria was the first non-Communist country to recognize the country. That lack of recognition continues to this day, with several other nations, including France, Japan and Taiwan, unwilling to recognize North Korea.

(Pictured) Portraits of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Sept. 9, 2012.

North Korea is the only country in the world holding a U.S. Navy ship captive. The USS Pueblo was seized with 83 crew members in 1968, and serves as a museum in its capital city of Pyongyang.

American soldier James Dresnok ran across a minefield to defect to North Korea in 1962. He then worked as an actor in propaganda films and an English teacher in Pyongyang. Only once did he try to leave the country - in 1966, when he walked to the Soviet embassy to seek asylum. However, he was sent back after questioning.

(Pictured) Dresnok in the documentary "Crossing the Line" (2006).

Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un’s father and the second Supreme Leader of North Korea, reportedly spent around $800,000 every year on importing Hennessy cognac.

Reportedly, North Korean men have to choose between 10 state-sanctioned haircuts while women have 18 hairdo options. In 2015, men in the country were instructed to get Kim Jong Un’s hairstyle, known as an 'ambition cut,' while women were advised to copy First Lady Ri Sol Ju's bob.

According to the Corruption Perceptions Index 2017 by Transparency International, North Korea is the seventh-most corrupt nation in the world (along with Libya, Guinea-Bissau and Equatorial Guinea).

The Rungrado May Day Stadium in Pyongyang is the world’s largest and can reportedly seat around 150,000 people.

Officially, North Korea is not a communist nation. The state ideology is called juche, which translates to self-reliance; it was developed by Kim Il Sung.

(Pictured) The Juche Tower, built to commemorate Kim Il Sung's 70th birthday, in Pyongyang on Sept. 9, 2008.

Since Kim Jong Un came into power, hundreds of miles of barbed wire fencing has gone up on the country's border with China. The increased security has made it more expensive to defect, a process usually arranged by brokers. Reportedly, it takes around $8,000 per person to get a defector to China, the most widely used escape route.

The official line considers the term “the hermit kingdom” an insult. The country should always be referred to as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, DPR Korea or DPRK. South Korea is written in print as “south Korea.”

It is against the law for North Koreans to speak to foreigners without state permission. Visiting journalists are assigned full-time minders or “guides,” without whom they cannot travel or talk to people.

(Pictured) A North Korean soldier explains the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) to tourists on June 13, 2018.

North Koreans follow the Juche calendar, which was adopted in 1997. It designates the year of Kim Il Sung's birth – 1912 – as Juche 1. So, 2018 is Juche 107. There are no “before Juche 1” years.

Citizens and tourists alike are supposed to refer to the country’s leaders with reverence. Kim Il Sung (L), the founder of the country, is “eternal president” or “great general.” His son Kim Jong Il (R) is "chairman" or "dear leader." Kim Jong Un is "supreme leader" or "dear respected.”

Foreigners are not allowed to buy pins of flags with portraits of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. These badges are supposed to be worn, over the left breast, by all citizens.

National Geographic reports the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea is the most heavily militarized border in the world.

According to National Geographic, there are around 200,000 prisoners held in work camps across the country. Political crimes can land entire families - up to three generations - in prison.

(Pictured) Kim Dong Chul, a U.S. citizen detained in North Korea on charges of espionage, is escorted to his trial on April 29, 2016, in Pyongyang.

In the '90s, all teachers had to learn to play the accordion if they wanted to get their teaching certificate. It was called the “people’s instrument” since its portability made it easy to carry around in the fields on a day of voluntary hard labor.

The country has only three major television channels; two of these are available only on weekends and the third can only be watched in the evening. Watching a western movie could get you sent to prison or even executed.

The country holds elections every five years and voting is mandatory, but only one candidate’s name is on the ballot. Citizens are only allowed to vote "yes" or "no" and nearly 100 percent of eligible citizens vote. Abstaining or voting "no" can be seen as an act of treason.

In 1978, the North reportedly kidnapped South Korean film director Shin Sang-ok (L) and his wife, actress Choi Eun-hee (R), to establish the North Korean film industry. While both managed to escape in 1986 during a film festival and later settled in the U.S., Shin popularly made the North Korean version of the Japanese movie “Godzilla” (1954), called “Pulgasari” (1985).

According to the CIA, the country claims a 100 percent literacy rate, meaning everyone over the age of 15 can read and write. However, school children have to provide their own desks and chairs and pay for heating.

Only military and government officials are allowed to own motor vehicles. In addition, only people considered trustworthy and loyal are allowed to live in Pyongyang.

The country has a three-class system with people put into “core,” “wavering” and “hostiles.” Politicians and government loyalists are in the “core” class and given the best opportunities. The “wavering” class is made of neutrals while “hostiles” are people whose families have committed crimes. They are punished, denied education, monitored closely and kept away from Pyongyang.

Blue denim jeans and piercings represent Western ideas and capitalist America, so they are banned. The length of skirts, the shape of shoes and even T-shirts are monitored so they adhere to the nation's socialist lifestyle.