Trump says he agrees with dictator Kim Jong-un over US-South Korea war games: 'Never been a fan'

US president praises 'beautiful' three-page letter 'hand-delivered' from North Korea leader

File image of US president Donald Trump meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

Donald Trump has said he is in agreement with Kim Jong-un over the North Korea dictator's opposition to US-South Korea war games and suggested the pair will soon have a fourth meeting.

Speaking to reporters before departing the White House for his golf club in New Jersey, the US president also praised a "beautiful letter" he received from Mr Kim amid increased tensions on the Korean peninsula.

North Korea has conducted a series of missile tests in recent weeks, which Mr Trump said were all short-range missiles.

"I got a very beautiful letter from Kim Jong-un yesterday hand delivered from ... and it was a very positive letter," Mr Trump said.

"I'll think we'll have another meeting. He really wrote a beautiful three-page, I mean right from top to bottom, a really beautiful letter, and maybe I'll release the results of the letter, but it was very positive."

Mr Trump and Mr Kim have met three times since last year to discuss ways to resolve a crisis over North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes, but progress has been scant on Washington's aim of getting the North Korea leader to give up his weapons.

Mr Trump said Mr Kim had said he was "not happy" about the missile tests, which the North Korean leader has said were a response to US-South Korean military drills being held this month. Mr Trump said he himself had "never been a fan" of the war games.

"You know why? I don't like paying for it. We should be reimbursed for it and I have told that to South Korea.

"But I said, 'do this,' because this is a big test; this was a turnover of various areas to South Korea. I like that, because that's what should happen."

US secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday he was hopeful talks would resume in coming and that the US side was planning for negotiations in a couple of weeks.

A summit between Mr Trump and Mr Kim in Hanoi in February collapsed over a failure to narrow differences over US demands for North Korea to give up all of its nuclear weapons and Pyongyang’s demands for relief from punishing sanctions.