NEW HAMPSHIRE: The third summit between the leaders of North and South Korea last month was a huge accomplishment for Moon Jae-in and Kim…
NEW HAMPSHIRE: The third summit between the leaders of North and South Korea last month was a huge accomplishment for Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong Un.
At home, Moon’s approval rating shot up from 49 per cent in early September to 65 per cent a week after the summit, largely due to his successful efforts to jump start the denuclearisation process with Pyongyang.
Kim got the chance to publicise his economy-focused “new strategic line” to the world through North Korea’s Arirang Mass Games, and created an image of peace with Moon thanks to the signing of a military agreement that would decrease forces along the inter-Korean border.
North Korea also agreed to demolish its missile test facility in Dongchang-ri under the supervision of outside inspectors, and said if Washington could take “corresponding” steps, the North would in return dismantle its Yongbyon nuclear complex.
These understandings helped lay the foundation for US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Pyongyang to prepare for the second Trump-Kim summit. It is likely that President Donald Trump will once again meet with Kim within the next two months, sometime after the US midterm elections in November.
The fact that Trump has agreed to meet with Kim for the second time is a welcome sign after the subsequent quarrel after the Singapore summit between the two sides over the definition of concessions.
However, it is important to note that together with the hype of the second summit, there is always an inherent dilemma in any highly publicised denuclearisation negotiation with North Korea.
That is, the more attention the world pays to Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal, the fewer incentives it has to actually give up its weapons.
TALKING FOR THE SAKE OF IT
Thanks to the relentless pursuit of a nuclear capability, North Korea’s nuclear weapons have bestowed upon the country a reputation and leverage disproportional to its underdeveloped economy.
From a country that was predicted to collapse after the Cold War, Pyongyang’s nuclear programme seen the country gain economic assistance and security guarantees from the US and South Korea.
