North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was willing to open talks with the United States five years ago and asked former NBA star Dennis Rodman to deliver the message to then-U.S. President Barack Obama. But Obama wouldn’t listen, Rodman said.
Rodman traveled to North Korea several times in 2013 and 2014 for basketball exhibitions and met with Kim and other top people in the regime multiple times. During one of the meetings, Kim asked him to relay a message to Obama, Rodman told CNN on June 12 Singapore time.