Trump Says He Played 'Rocket Man' For North Korea's Kim Jong-un
16:12 GMT 12.12.2021 (Updated: 16:18 GMT 12.12.2021)
© AFP 2023 / BRENDAN SMIALOWSKIUS President Donald Trump speaks as he stands with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un south of the Military Demarcation Line that divides North and South Korea, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) on June 30, 2019
![US President Donald Trump speaks as he stands with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un south of the Military Demarcation Line that divides North and South Korea, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) on June 30, 2019 US President Donald Trump speaks as he stands with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un south of the Military Demarcation Line that divides North and South Korea, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) on June 30, 2019 - Sputnik International, 1920, 12.12.2021](https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e5/0c/0c/1091465490_0:0:3071:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_d9b3cc33c5c7f0702ed47d9c5f009344.jpg)
© AFP 2023 / BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI
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Back in 2018, then-US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was reported to have brought an Elton John CD with the song "Rocket Man" when the US delegation headed to North Korea for denuclearisation talks.
Former US President Donald Trump has claimed that he gave North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a cassette with Elton John's song "Rocket Man" and a "machine" to play it on.
The ex-president revealed the fun fact during the first night of his "History Tour", which kicked off in Florida on Saturday.
"I made sure the machine wasn't made in South Korea", Trump joked, without going deep into detail about the machine. "I played it for him quickly and I said, 'I did you a favour because you love sending rockets all over the place'".
On “Rocket Man” - #historytour #sunrise #Florida #trump pic.twitter.com/0WOqyIN4Gt
— Fla.N8tive (@FN8tive) December 11, 2021
"Rocket Man" was a nickname for the North Korean leader that Trump came up with back in 2017, when he first referred to Kim as such in a tweet.
"I spoke with President Moon of South Korea last night. Asked him how Rocket Man is doing. Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad!" Trump tweeted back when he was allowed on the platform.
Then, he repeated the nickname during his UN General Assembly speech. Later, US diplomats told media outlets that the "Rocket Man" tweet was ill-advised.
In regard to the unambiguous gift that Trump spoke about in Florida, it was earlier reported by Chosun Ilbo that then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had brought a "Rocket Man" CD for Kim Jong-un during the 2018 denuclearisation talks in Pyongyang.
The newspaper said, citing a source in Washington, that the "Rocket Man" CD was the subject of discussion during Trump's lunch with Kim. When the North Korean leader mentioned Trump's nickname for him, then-president asked whether Kim knew the song, and it appeared he did not. Trump remembered the conversation and told Pompeo to bring a CD with the song for Kim.
Trump's Florida anecdote is understood to be the first time he has addressed the allegation. Pompeo himself has never commented on the story.