President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Kim Jong UnSatellite images indicate North Korea preparing for massive military parade South Korea warns of underwater missile test launch by North Korea Trump says he didn't share classified information following Woodward book MORE battled with their own advisers as they negotiated denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula before tensions were recently renewed, according to a report in The Washington Post.

Federal officials announced Thursday the first-ever seizure of a North Korean cargo vessel for violating U.S. sanctions, which came shortly after North Korea tested two short-range ballistic missiles, the first confirmed test by Pyongyang in over 500 days.

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The renewed tensions, which followed a months-long lull in escalation as negotiations continued, highlighted the limits of what Trump has cast as a rosy relationship with Kim.

“He sends him pictures. He sends him letters. I don’t know how President Trump can be more forthcoming in his efforts to have a good relationship with Kim Jong Un,” national security adviser John Bolton John BoltonMaximum pressure is keeping US troops in Iraq and Syria Woodward book trails Bolton, Mary Trump in first-week sales Ex-NSC official alleges 'unprecedented' intervention by White House aides in Bolton book review MORE told "PBS NewsHour."



“We had very substantive negotiations with Kim Jong Un - we know what they want and they know what we must have. Relationship very good, let’s see what happens!” Trump himself tweeted in March after leaving a nuclear summit with Kim in Vietnam.

Great to be back from Vietnam, an amazing place. We had very substantive negotiations with Kim Jong Un - we know what they want and they know what we must have. Relationship very good, let’s see what happens! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 1, 2019

Yet the talks have reportedly been hampered by internal feuding on both sides of the negotiating table, multiple sources tell the Post.

Kim demoted his top nuclear negotiator Kim Yong Chol in April, according to the Post, casting aside a hard-liner who butted heads with U.S. negotiators.

Trump also defied some advisers’ concerns this week when he told South Korea’s president in a phone conversation that he supports aid for North Korea to ease food shortages, which some fear would ease internal pressure on Kim to negotiate.

The president was also aggravated in March after ruling out future sanctions against Pyongyang, only to find out that penalties had been levied without his approval.

“What’s really striking is how in both systems, the bureaucracies aren’t always moving in the same direction as the leaders are signaling,” Scott Snyder, a Korea expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, told the Post.

Trump singled out Bolton at a press conference Thursday, saying he has to “temper” the well-known hard-liner.

“He has strong views on things, but that’s okay. I actually temper John, which is pretty amazing isn’t it?” Trump said at an impromptu briefing. “I have other people who are a little more dovish than him, and ultimately I make the decision.”

Officials told the Post that the president kept Bolton away from a dinner with Kim in March and told advisers that Bolton would not help him reach a deal with Kim because he had such negative views of the North Korean government.

National Security Council spokesman Garrett Marquis said Bolton is “pursuing the president’s national security agenda, and he has repeatedly emphasized that the president has opened the door for North Korea to enter into a very bright economic future.”

The National Security Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.

Despite the internal feuds, Trump officials say they are determined to reach a deal with North Korea.

“President Trump’s summit with Chairman Kim in Hanoi was a very productive meeting, though the time was not right to sign a deal,” Steve Biegun, U.S. special representative on North Korea, told the Post. “We believe working-level talks are the best way to make progress at this time.”

“I believe that Kim Jong Un fully realizes the great economic potential of North Korea, & will do nothing to interfere or end it,” Trump tweeted after North Korea launched short-range projectiles last week. “He also knows that I am with him & does not want to break his promise to me. Deal will happen!”