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Trump said that he and Abe are \"very unified\" on the issue of North Korea, and said there are five separate locations under consideration as he plans to meet with Kim Jong Un in early June or before that. But the president also added a potential caveat.

\"Assuming things go well, it's possible things won't go well and we won't have the meeting,\" Trump said. \"We will see what happens.\"

Speaking to reporters in advance of Abe's arrival, Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow and senior director for Asian Affairs at the National Security Council Matthew Pottinger emphasized that Trump and Abe have a close friendship and that Trump has met with Abe more than any other foreign leader since taking office 14 months ago.

Trump said that he and Abe hope to play a round of golf together, if possible -- saying the pair would \"sneak out\" to hit the links tomorrow at one of Trump's nearby golf courses if they have the time.

Kudlow was also asked about his new role announced last week after a meeting the president held with lawmakers at the White House to consider the U.S. potentially negotiating to re-join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade accord the president routinely derided as a \"terrible deal\" while he was a candidate for the presidency.

\"There’s nothing at all concrete,\" Kudlow said. \"On the American side at the moment, it’s more of a thought than a policy.\"

Kudlow insisted the Japanese are open to discussions about potentially reentering, but said such a deal would only happen if the U.S. is able to achieve a more favorable deal.

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