When Secretary of State Mike Pompeo left on Thursday for continued denuclearization talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, he carried with him two gifts from President Donald Trump. Along with a letter from Trump, Pompeo planned to hand deliver a CD copy of Elton John’s “Rocket Man.”
Besides a letter from @POTUS, Kim Jong Un will also receive from @SecPompeo an @eltonofficial CD — signed by @realDonaldTrump — containing the song ‘Rocket Man,’ according to @Chosun. https://t.co/wbN43rFWUO
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) July 6, 2018
The gift was not only a reference to the nickname given to Kim by President Trump last year — when the two were engaged in a tit-for-tat that included a number of traded barbs, insults and shows of force — but also to their recent June summit, when Trump learned that Kim had never heard the song.
From Chosun: “The ‘Rocket Man’ CD was the subject of discussion during Trump’s lunch with Kim, and Trump asked Kim if he knew the song and Kim said no.
“Trump remembered the conversation and told Pompeo to take a CD with the song for Kim.”
— Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie) July 6, 2018
Pompeo is scheduled to arrive in Pyongyang on Friday, and will spend two days in North Korea. In addition to talks regarding denuclearization, He will continue to negotiate the return of the bodies of American soldiers who were killed or imprisoned during the Korean War (1950-1953).