Donald Trump, former U.S. president (right), during his summit meeting with North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore in June 2018. AFP=Yonhap News
Reuters reported on the 26th (local time), citing two sources, that the team of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is discussing the possibility of direct talks with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un.
Reuters stated that “Trump’s transition team hopes that this new diplomatic effort will help reduce the risk of military conflict with North Korea.”
However, sources reported that these policy discussions are fluid and that President-elect Trump has not made a final decision. Reuters assessed that “it is unclear what outcome the new diplomatic efforts by Trump’s team will bring,” and added, citing sources, that “Trump’s initial goal is to re-establish basic engagement, but additional policy goals or an exact timetable have not been set.” Trump’s transition team did not respond to requests for comment.
On the 22nd, President-elect Trump nominated Alex Wong, who was a key negotiator in U.S.-North Korea relations during his first term, as Deputy National Security Advisor at the White House. This has been interpreted as a reflection of his interest in resuming U.S.-North Korea dialogue. At the Republican National Convention in July, Trump stated, “It’s good to get along with someone who has many nuclear weapons,” and “If I am re-elected, I will get along well with Kim Jong-un.”
Kim Jong-un stated on the 21st, “We have already gone as far as we can with negotiations with the U.S.,” dismissing the possibility of renewed dialogue with a hypothetical second Trump administration. This was North Korea’s first official stance targeting the incoming U.S. administration since Trump’s election. Although they ruled out the possibility of diplomatic engagement for now, analysts suggest that even if dialogue resumes, North Korea may attempt to increase its negotiating power by pursuing “arms reduction talks” with the premise of being a nuclear state rather than “denuclearization.”