The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday (Tuesday), citing American officials, that President Donald Trump is pressuring his aides to hold a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as soon as possible next fall, seeking to revive his aggressive diplomatic efforts that he began during his first term to persuade Kim to abandon his country's nuclear program.
The newspaper added that Trump discussed in private meetings the possibility of holding direct talks with Kim during his next trip to Asia, which may take place in November to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Organization meeting hosted by China.
There are still no official arrangements for the meeting, but the White House confirmed that the two presidents will meet at the appropriate time.
According to the newspaper, Trump's desire to hold another decisive meeting with Kim indicates that he is eagerly searching for a prominent achievement in foreign policy, in light of the continued difficulty of achieving victory in Iran. Most presidents have refused to meet Kim - who is estimated to possess dozens of nuclear warheads - without preconditions.
While Trump sees another bilateral meeting as an opportunity to reopen dialogue with North Korea, analysts and some American officials said they do not expect significant progress.
Seoul supports dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang in the hope of enhancing stability in the region. But analysts and American officials pointed out that a bad agreement could ultimately harm relations with regional allies such as South Korea.
Former CIA official Bruce Klingner said: “He is appeasing another autocratic dictator based on the false perception that a personal relationship will actually succeed in achieving US foreign policy goals.”
Trump tried to meet with Kim during an Asian tour last year, and asked reporters aboard Air Force One to “publish” his desire to have a conversation with him.
According to American officials, North Korea expressed its willingness to meet indirectly, but time constraints and the difficulty of arrangements prevented it from being held.
Trump later said that holding a summit with Kim at that time might have affected his scheduled meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.
Trump and Kim held three summits during his first term, which began in Singapore in 2018, before negotiations collapsed in Hanoi in 2019 after Kim refused to agree to dismantle his entire nuclear program. Trump and Kim also held a meeting in the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas in the same year, but it did not succeed in ending the stalemate.
Analysts believe that resuming negotiations will not be easy, as North Korea's nuclear and missile capabilities have increased since the last meeting between the two leaders.
Washington faces a greater challenge in any new negotiations, after North Korea strengthened its relations with China and Russia, developed its military cooperation with Iran, and sent thousands of soldiers to participate alongside Russia in the war in Ukraine, giving its forces additional combat experience.
Experts believe that Kim will enter any future negotiations from a stronger position, in light of his insistence on maintaining his nuclear arsenal and his endeavor to push the United States to deal with his country as a nuclear state.
American intelligence estimates indicate that North Korea is continuing to expand its strategic programs, including missiles and nuclear warheads, while an American defense official warned that its nuclear forces have become more capable of targeting American territory, while its missiles can strike South Korea and Japan with nuclear or conventional warheads.
