After months of escalating tensions between North Korea and the United States, officials made a stunning announcement on Thursday: Kim Jong-un, the North’s leader, had invited President Trump to meet and discuss his country’s nuclear program — and Mr. Trump accepted. The report is particularly surprising given that no sitting American president has ever met with a North Korean leader, and that Mr. Trump himself had ruled out direct talks unless North Korea agreed to take measurable steps toward relinquishing its nuclear arsenal.
