Mr Trump fielded questions about the summit during a press conference days after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced he would suspend the talks over joint US-South Korean military drills.

But Mr Trump claimed nothing had changed with regards to North Korea, adding that "our people" were "literally dealing with them right now".

"North Korea's actually talking to us about times and everything else as though nothing happened," he said. "We have not been told anything. We're just reading stories like you are."

The summit between Mr Trump and Mr Kim would be the first between a sitting US president and North Korean leader. The two leaders had planned to discuss the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula – a top foreign policy priority of the US for decades.

Mike Pompeo confident US and North Korea have 'shared understanding of ultimate objectives from summit'

The two countries have been discussing the summit for months, exchanging compliments and even negotiating the release of prisoners. But North Korea backed away from the talks this week, after the US and South Korea launched their annual military drills in the South.

Mr Trump said on Thursday that there would be no change to the military exercises. But he also distanced himself from controversial remarks made by his national security adviser, John Bolton, which angered Mr Kim.

The president said he was not looking to employ the “Libya model” in his dealings with North Korea – something Mr Bolton had suggested in comments days before.

North Korea Military Parade Show all 6 1 /6 North Korea Military Parade North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, a military parade is held at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade This screen grab taken from North Korea's KCTV on February 8, 2018 shows members of North Korea's military taking part in a parade, with missiles being displayed, in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. North Korea staged a military parade in Pyongyang on February 8 to mark the 70th anniversary of its armed forces, in a show of strength just a day before the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games open in the South. / AFP PHOTO / KCTV / KCTV / -----EDITORS NOTE --- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / KCTV" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVESKCTV/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT, North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, inspects honor guards, along with his wife Ri Sol Ju, center, during a military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, watches the military parade in Pyongyang, Thursday, Feb. 8 2018. North Korea held a military parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square on Thursday, just one day before South Korea holds the opening ceremony for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (KRT via AP Photo) AP North Korea Military Parade This screen grab taken from North Korea's KCTV on February 8, 2018 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaking during a military parade in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. North Korea staged a military parade in Pyongyang on February 8 to mark the 70th anniversary of its armed forces, in a show of strength just a day before the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games open in the South. / AFP PHOTO / KCTV / KCTV / -----EDITORS NOTE --- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / KCTV" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVESKCTV/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images

"The Libya model was a much different model. We decimated that country," Mr Trump said.

In North Korea, the president said, Mr Kim "would be there, he would be running his country, his country would be very rich”.

NATO forces helped push Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi from power in 2011, eight years after the leader struck a deal with the US to surrender his nuclear weapons.

Mr Trump said he was willing to offer Mr Kim “protections” if the leader agreed to give up his nuclear weapons. The Libya model, he added, would only be employed if the two countries could not reach an agreement.