What is 2018 North Korea United States Summit?

It's the June 12, 2018 meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un at Singapore's Capella Hotel, and the wave of Reddit photoshops, video edits, and viral moments the televised handshake produced.

Where did 2018 North Korea United States Summit come from?

Planning began with a secret Pompeo-Kim meeting in Pyongyang in late March 2018, and by early May Singapore was set as the venue. The meme wave started the day of the summit itself, June 12, 2018.

What does 2018 North Korea United States Summit mean?

The visual shorthand refers to two unlikely parties meeting face-to-face, often played for comedy by swapping the flag backdrop or captioning the handshake with lines about online feuds finally spilling into real life.

How do you use 2018 North Korea United States Summit?

Typically by editing the Trump-Kim handshake frame, either changing the backdrop, replacing one leader with a fictional character, or reusing the ReggieStration "Xbox live" caption format when two rivals finally meet.

Is 2018 North Korea United States Summit still popular?

The peak was June 12, 2018 itself, when the handshake GIF hit 74,600 upvotes on /r/gifs and Trump's own summit montage tweet pulled 103,700 likes in six hours. It's now a classic political meme moment referenced occasionally rather than actively remixed.

2018 North Korea United States Summit

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Published August 15, 2026

The 2018 North Korea United States Summit was the June 12, 2018 meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un at Singapore's Capella Hotel that spawned Reddit photoshops, an emotional Dennis Rodman CNN appearance, and Trump's fake iPad movie trailer casting both leaders as world-saving heroes.

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Overview

The 2018 North Korea United States Summit was the first ever face-to-face meeting between a sitting US President and a North Korean leader1. Held at the Capella Hotel on Singapore's Sentosa Island on June 12, 2018, the heavily televised handshake between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un instantly turned into remixable material for image macros, animated GIFs, and video edits across Reddit, Twitter, and YouTube2.

The most recognizable frame from the summit is Trump and Kim standing in front of alternating US and North Korean flags with hands clasped between them. Photoshoppers swapped that backdrop into video game menus, movie posters, and cartoon crossovers within hours of the live broadcast.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

News broadcast (source event) / Reddit (viral spread)

Date

2018

The summit was arranged through back channels. CIA Director Mike Pompeo secretly met Kim in Pyongyang in late March 2018 to plan the meeting, and by early May administration officials had been instructed to move forward with Singapore as the venue1. Singapore was picked for its neutrality and its status as one of just 47 countries hosting a North Korean embassy1. Trump abruptly cancelled the summit on May 24, citing "tremendous anger and open hostility" from Pyongyang, then reinstated it on June 1 for the original June 12 date2.

How It Spread

On summit day, Reddit lit up. An animated GIF of the Trump-Kim handshake hit the front page of /r/gifs with over 74,600 upvotes and 7,100 comments, Redditor ReggieStration's photo captioned "When you finally meet that person you've been talking shit to on Xbox live" pulled 3,860 upvotes on /r/funny, and photoshopped edits swept /r/dankmemes the same day2.

Off Reddit, former NBA player Dennis Rodman appeared on CNN wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat and broke down crying on-air while describing his friendship with Kim, while Trump tweeted a summit video montage that pulled 103,700 likes and 30,700 retweets in its first six hours.

The strangest meme moment came at Trump's post-summit press conference. He told reporters he had shown Kim a fake Hollywood-style movie trailer on an iPad casting the two leaders as world-saving heroes, and a YouTube upload of that trailer crossed one million views and 1,500 comments within 24 hours3. Coverage followed from BuzzFeed, The New York Times, and The Washington Post the same day.

How to Use This Meme

The core template is the Trump-Kim handshake photo in front of the alternating US and North Korean flag backdrop. People typically swap the flag wall for a different setting (video game screen, sitcom title card, movie poster) or replace one of the two leaders with a fictional character to imply an unlikely alliance or awkward meetup. The ReggieStration "Xbox live" caption format is often reused when two people or characters who have been feuding online finally meet in person.