Chairman Kim goes to Hanoi

It took 66 hours, from Saturday afternoon to Tuesday morning, for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to travel via train all the way across China to Vietnam.

He made the journey in order to sit with US President Donald Trump once again to discuss the North’s denuclearization measures and corresponding steps that the US will take in return.

Every move that Kim makes is being closely watched by the international media, not only because the upcoming summit is a high-profile event, but because Kim rarely goes on outings abroad, except to the North’s close ally and neighbor, China.

Here are images that capture moments of the 36-year-old leader’s trip to Hanoi.

 

North Korean leader Kim inspects guards before boarding an armored train. (Yonhap)

Kim waves to the crowd from an armored train before leaving for Vietnam from Pyongyang Station on Sunday.(Yonhap)

 

In this screen grab from a video by Japan’s TBS TV early Tuesday, Kim takes a predawn smoke break at a train station in Nanning, China. (TBS-JNN via AP-Yonhap)

 

The train carrying Kim arrives in Hanoi, Vietnam, Tuesday. (EPA-Yonhap)

 

Kim (center) waves as he arrives at Dong Dang Railway Station in Lang Son province, Vietnam, Tuesday, ahead of the US-North Korea summit in Hanoi. (EPA-Yonhap)

In this photo provided by Vietnam News Agency, Kim (center) arrives at Dong Dang railway station in Lang Son Province, Vietnam, Tuesday. (Xinhua-Yonhap)

In this photo provided by Vietnam News Agency, Kim arrives at Dong Dang railway station in Lang Son Province, Vietnam, Tuesday. (Xinhua-Yonhap)

North Korean bodyguards run along a limousine transporting North Korean leader Kim upon his arrival at the town of Dong Dang, Vietnam, Tuesday. (Reuters-Yonhap)

Kim waves to the crowd as he steps off the train at the town of Dong Dang, Vietnam, Tuesday. (Yonhap)

A motorcade transporting North Korean leader Kim passes the Hanoi Opera House in Vietnam, Tuesday. (AP-Yonhap)