Kim ‘won’t agree to hand over weapons’
Kim Jong-un is unlikely to give up North Korea’s nuclear weapons despite his summit with Donald Trump, former UK foreign ministers who covered Asia have warned. Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, the former ministers said they were “extremely sceptical” of the chances of a breakthrough and feared the regime was playing games. Dame Margaret Beckett, the former foreign secretary, said it was “hard to believe” that Kim would give away his weapons.
KIM JONG-UN is unlikely to give up North Korea’s nuclear weapons despite his summit with Donald Trump, former UK foreign ministers who covered Asia have warned.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, the ex-ministers said they were “extremely sceptical” of the chance of a breakthrough and feared the regime was playing similar games as in the past.
Dame Margaret Beckett, the former foreign secretary, said it was “hard to believe” that Mr Kim will give away his weapons – while Lord Malloch-brown, the foreign minister overseeing Asia between 2007 and 2009, predicted it would not happen.
Their fears are a stark contrast to Mr Trump’s position, who has talked up the chance of denuclearisation on the Korean peninsula amid warming diplomatic relations this year.
The US president is even considering inviting Mr Kim to his Mar-a-lago golf resort in Florida if talks go well, according to Bloomberg – though he is willing to walk out of the summit if things go sour. More concerns that the June 12 summit in Singapore may not bring the breakthrough the Trump administration desires have begun to surface ahead of the meeting.
At a meeting at the White House today, Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, will urge Mr Trump not to forget Japan’s security concerns in his drive for a deal.
Meanwhile, US congressmen have attempted to wrestle some control of the process by introducing a bill that demands a detailed administration report on North Korea’s nuclear programme. Mr Trump and Mr Kim’s meeting will be historic, but North Korea experts fear the event could be big on symbolism yet short of major policy breakthroughs.
Theresa May, the Prime Minister, discussed the summit with Mr Trump this week.
Asked by this newspaper if Mr Kim was really willing to give up the nuclear weapons that his family has been striving to develop over decades of rule, former Foreign Office figures expressed pessimism.
Lord Malloch-brown said: “No. The examples of Libya will hold back Kim and there will also be spoilers on
Trump’s own team.
“If President Trump’s word was predictable and trustworthy it might come down differently, at least for Kim.”
Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, gave up his nuclear programme but was later overthrown and killed.
Lord Malloch-brown added: “Nevertheless, President Trump is right to roll the dice on this, as previous US policy has achieved little.”
Dame Margaret, foreign secretary between 2006 and 2007, said she can “completely understand people being sceptical” and urged the US president to “approach with caution”.
“I think it is right not to turn down the opportunity, but it’s also right to be very conscious of what you’re doing and the risks,” she said.
Dennis Rodman, the former NBA basketball player, will reportedly be in Singapore at the time of the summit. The former Chicago Bulls star, who is one of the few westerners to have met the dictator, will arrive in the country a day before the meeting, The New York Post reported. It added that Rodman may even play a role in the talks.