Watch CBS News

Dennis Rodman Hails Planned Trump-Kim Meeting

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman, who has traveled several times to North Korea and is one of the few Americans to have met its leader, is praising President Donald Trump for planning a summit with Kim Jong Un.

Rodman tells The Associated Press he looks forward to returning to the pariah nation for "basketball diplomacy" in the coming months.

He says: "Well done, President Trump. You're on the way to a historical meeting no U.S. president has ever done." Rodman adds, "Please send my regards to Marshal Kim Jong Un and his family."

BASKETBALL-NKOREA-US-DIPLOMACY
Former NBA star Dennis Rodman (C) of the US poses with North Korean basketball players at the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium on June 15, 2017 Rodman arrived in the North Korean capital on June 13 on a mission he said he believed the US President would be "pretty happy" about, adding he was trying to accomplish something that "we both need". / AFP PHOTO / KIM Won-Jin (Photo credit should read KIM WON-JIN/AFP/Getty Images)

Rodman was speaking by phone soon after the planned summit was announced in Washington -- a major surprise after a year of rising tensions over North Korea's nuclear weapons.

Rodman met Kim in 2013 and 2014.

(© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.