WASHINGTON – North Korea's Kim Jong Un expressed "great satisfaction" with a letter from Donald Trump and is looking forward to a second nuclear summit with the U.S. president, a North Korean state news agency reported Wednesday.

Kim "spoke highly of President Trump for expressing his unusual determination and will for the settlement of the issue with a great interest in the second DPRK-U.S. summit," said the Korean Central News Agency, via a translation from the KCNA Watch website.

Last week, Trump announced he is planning to meet with Kim a second time in late February, with the specific date and location to be announced later.

The two met in Singapore in June.

Trump sought the second summit even though U.S. lawmakers and even some of his own advisers have criticized North Korea for not following up on Kim's pledge at the summit to denuclearize and dismantle his nation's nuclear weapons programs.

North Korea also did not announce the day and location of the summit, which Trump agreed to after meetings in Washington between U.S. diplomats and a North Korean delegation headed by top aide Kim Yong Chol.

Members of that delegation briefed Kim on their talks as they delivered the letter from Trump, KCNA said.

"Upon receiving the good personal letter sent by President Trump, the Supreme Leader expressed great satisfaction," the news agency said.



Kim also ordered aides to make "good technical preparations" for the second summit.