Trump-Kim summit shows need for more talks
Editor’s note: United States President Donald Trump and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea top leader Kim Jongun did not sign any deal at their second summit in Hanoi on Thursday. So what will US-DPRK relations be like in the future? Two experts share their views with China Daily’s Pan Yixuan. Excerpts follow:
Both sides should show patience to continue talks
Wang Sheng, a researcher at the Co-Innovation Center for Korean Peninsula Studies and a professor of international politics at Jilin University
That no agreements were signed between the US and the DPRK in Hanoi came as a surprise since expectations were high that the second Trump-Kim summit would yield at least a US-DPRK peace treaty, if not a pact on verifying the DPRK’s dismantled nuclear facilities or establishing a US liaison office in Pyongyang, or an agreement on Washington partly lifting sanctions against Pyongyang.
In fact, the US tried to lower the expectations before the summit by calling for long-term negotiations. It was confirmed at the post-summit news conference of Trump that the sticking point between the two sides is Washington’s refusal to accept Pyongyang’s demand to lift the sanctions in one fell swoop, and Pyongyang’s rejection of Washington’s proposal that it should do something “meaningful” to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula before getting any sanctions relief.
The US should therefore work out a long-term plan to resolve the peninsula nuclear issue. In fact, Trump said there is no need to increase sanctions on Pyongyang, and indicated that Washington will continue making efforts to negotiate with Pyongyang. As for the international community, it should help the US and the DPRK to restore permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Trump was cautious about reaching any consensus with Kim, as he would have to face more pressure at home. And perhaps that’s why he said he was not in a rush to sign an agreement.
As discussions on denuclearization have become more detailed, Trump better understands the complexity of the issue, resolving which has become a tough challenge for not only the US and the DPRK, but also China, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
The US should therefore work out a long-term plan to resolve the peninsula nuclear issue. In fact, Trump said there is no need to increase sanctions on Pyongyang, and indicated that Washington will continue making efforts to negotiate with Pyongyang.
As for the international community, it should help the US and the DPRK to restore permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula, because it would create development opportunities not only on the peninsula but also in the whole of Northeast Asia.
US and DPRK should be more pragmatic
Without mutual trust, neither the US will accept the DPRK’s demand for lifting the sanctions at one go, nor will Pyongyang dismantle all its nuclear facilities and destroy its nuclear weapons in compliance with Washington’s demand.
Perhaps this lack of mutual trust prevented Kim and Trump from signing any agreements at their second summit. Or maybe they didn’t sign any agreements because the two sides had not made good preparations to reach consensuses on even very important issues.
With no agreements planned in advance, all the problems were left for the two leaders to discuss and decide. And even if the two leaders have formed a good personal friendship, as Trump claimed, they cannot be expected to compromise their countries’ positions on complicated historical issues.
Yet the second summit cannot be regarded as a failure, especially because the Trump administration has left room for further talks with Pyongyang.
The Hanoi summit has taught a lesson to both Washington and Pyongyang: if they want bilateral talks to continue and make substantial achievements, they have to adjust their negotiation strategies and lower their expectations from each other.