Press TV- High-ranking officials of the US and North Korea have sat down for talks in Singapore in the lead-up to an unprecedented summit between their leaders, which Pyongyang says will focus on lasting peace and nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

The working-level talks on Monday were�aimed at narrowing the differences and making final preparations on the eve of the much-awaited summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

The US delegation in the preliminary talks was led by Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, a veteran diplomat who recently held talks with North Korean officials. The North Korean delegates were also headed by�Vice-Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui.

Trump and Kim arrived in Singapore on Sunday to hold the first ever face-to-face meeting between leaders of the two countries, which have remained enemies since the 1950-1953 Korean War.

On Monday, North Korea�s official KCNA news agency, which portrays the views of the government, commented for the first time on the agenda of the upcoming summit, saying the two sides would exchange �wide-ranging and profound views� to reset relations.
The topics on the agenda would include �the issue of building a permanent and durable peace-keeping mechanism on the Korean Peninsula, the issue of realizing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and other issues of mutual concern,� the KCNA reported.
Pyongyang had earlier dismissed any unilateral nuclear disarmament, and the KCNA�s reference to �denuclearization� has historically meant that the North wants the US to remove its �nuclear umbrella� protecting its allies in the region, South Korea and Japan.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also posted a tweet from Singapore and said his country is �committed to the complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.�

Hours after touching down in Singapore, Trump took to Twitter and said there is �excitement in the air� in Singapore ahead of his meeting with Kim.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] US President Donald Trump (2nd L) and his delegation share a working lunch with Singapore�s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (3rd R) and his team during the US leader�s visit to The Istana, the official residence of the prime minister, in Singapore on June 11, 2018. (Photo by AFP)[/caption]

He later held a launch meeting with Singapore�s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, during which he sounded a positive note on his upcoming talks with the North Korean leader.

�We�ve got a very interesting meeting in particular tomorrow, and I just think it's going to work out very nicely,� Trump said.

Lee had received the North Korean leader on Sunday.

The Trump-Kim summit will be held at Capella Jotel on Sentosa, a resort island off Singapore�s port with luxury hotels, a Universal Studios theme park and man-made beaches.

Singapore�s premier said on Sunday that hosting the historic summit would cost the nation around $20 million.

Trump and Kim are staying in separate hotels in the famous Orchard Road area of Singapore.