Trump's words raise expectations about the revival of direct diplomacy between Washington and Pyongyang that has been dormant during the Biden Administration. North Korean state media took 48 hours to inform the North Korean people that Donald Trump had been inaugurated as President of the United States on Monday.

North Korea’s leader has grown more assertive since their last efforts at diplomacy ended in failure — and now has Russia at his side.

Kim Jong Un, who Trump lauded as a "smart guy," has become Russian President Vladimir Putin’s key ally in a war against Ukraine, providing ballistic missiles, artillery, and 12,000 troops.