Ahead of the second US-North Korea leaders summit, Dr Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia is ready to settle its problem with North Korea, following the high-profile assassination of Kim Jong Nam, the brother of the country's leader Kim Jong Un.

"Malaysia will settle its problem with North Korea later," the prime minister said after presenting Bersatu membership cards to six former Umno MPs at the Perdana Leadership Foundation here today. 

Mahathir said this when responding to a question on whether Malaysia viewed the second summit between the United States and North Korean leaders as a positive development to reopen its embassy in Pyongyang.

President Donald Trump recently announced that his second summit with Jong Un will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb 27 and 28.

The 2017 murder of Jong Nam in KLIA2 sparked a diplomatic row between Malaysia and North Korea. According to previous reports, the Malaysian Embassy in Pyongyang has not been staffed since April 2017.

In an interview with Nikkei Asian Review last year, Mahathir was reported to have said that Malaysia would reopen its embassy and might re-establish its relationship with North Korea.

Mahathir said Malaysia did not want to see confrontation and conflict with any country.

"Any attempt by any country to work with Malaysia will be welcome," he added.

- Bernama