U.S. President Donald J. Trump on Tuesday touted his administration's efforts to achieve peace through negotiations to dismantle North Korea's nuclear weapons programme.

Speaking to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Trump said his Singapore summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last June was "highly productive."   The two leaders agreed that it was in both countries' interest to pursue denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the S. Korean News Agency (Yonhap) reported today.

"With support from many countries here today, we have engaged with North Korea to replace the specter of conflict with a bold and new push for peace," Trump told the U.N., striking a markedly different tone from a year ago, when he stood at the same podium to threaten to "totally destroy" North Korea over its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

 "I would like to thank Chairman Kim for his courage and for the steps he has taken," the president said Tuesday, adding that much work remains to be done. "The sanctions will stay in place until denuclearization occurs."