A 2019 mission in North Korea, which intended to have Navy SEALs plant an electronic device to intercept communications of the country’s leader Kim Jong Un, resulted in an unsuccessful operation that left unarmed North Koreans dead, according to a report from the New York Times on Friday. The mission, which took place during President Donald Trump’s first term, required the president’s direct approval, the Times reports, and came amid high-level nuclear talks between the US and North Korea. Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementTrump, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday, said he knows “nothing” about the 2019 mission reported by the Times. The relationship between the United States and North Korea, a country that is highly isolated, has been rocky over the years. In 2019, Trump would make history as the first sitting US leader to set foot in the hermit kingdom, when he shook hands with Kim and took 20 steps into North Korea.

Source: The Times September 06, 2025 16:16 UTC