Kim Jong Un arrived in Hanoi Tuesday to ultra-tight security and enthusiastic crowds ahead of a second summit with Donald Trump, as the world looks for tangible progress over North Korea's nuclear programme.
After a historic initial meeting in Singapore in June that produced only a vague statement about denuclearisation, analysts say the second date must deliver more concrete steps towards dismantling Pyongyang's arsenal.
The normally sleepy Vietnamese border station of Dong Dang spruced itself up for Kim's arrival after the young leader emulated his grandfather with a 4,000-kilometre, two-and-a-half-day odyssey through China aboard his olive green train.
A military guard of honour in pristine white uniforms presented arms as Kim strolled down the red carpet waving and grinning, surrounded by a phalanx of aides and security personnel.
Local official Hoang Thi Thuy, said she had waited in the cold rain since before dawn for a glimpse of Kim, the first North Korean leader to visit fellow one-party state Vietnam since his grandfather Kim Il Sung in 1964.
"I was so excited when we were told to stand in place for the arrival of the train," she told AFP. "We saw the leader from afar. I felt so happy, it's hard to describe."
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