Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is traveling to North Korea

Mike Pompeo.
(Image credit: Toya Sarno Jordan/Getty Images)

Newly confirmed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is en route to North Korea, President Trump announced Tuesday, where he will seek to begin negotiating a denuclearization deal with North Korean officials.

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It is Pompeo's second known trip to North Korea; he met with leader Kim Jong Un secretly in April while he was still serving as CIA director.

Pompeo's visit comes ahead of a highly anticipated summit between Trump and Kim, and amid rapidly thawing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. When asked by a reporter if three Americans being held prisoner in North Korea will be freed, Trump said: "We'll soon be finding out."

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.