SINGAPORE — Former NBA star Dennis Rodman openly wept on television in a live interview from Singapore on Tuesday as President Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un met for the first time. He told the Associated Press that he hopes to soon visit the White House.

The eccentric former reality television star is one of the few Westerners to have spent time with Kim during multiple visits to Pyongyang. The two struck up an unlikely friendship over their shared love of basketball. Rodman also goes back years with Trump and appeared on his “Celebrity Apprentice” show.

In an emotional and sometimes hard-to-follow interview with CNN’s Chris Cuomo, Rodman, wearing sunglasses and a “Make America Great Again” hat, said he had received a call from the White House ahead of Trump’s historic meeting with Kim – the first between a sitting president and North Korean leader.

Rodman later told the AP in a phone interview that the call had come from White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

“She sent her best wishes and said that Donald Trump is really proud of you. He’s happy you’re having some type of part of this whole situation,” Rodman recalled her saying. “He’s very happy to carry out the things I’ve been saying.”

Sanders did not immediately respond to questions about the call.