Victor Cha: “North Korea will want to contact Trump, who has been weakened by his crushing defeat in the midterm elections.”
Quick Look
- Victor Cha, CSIS Korea Distinguished Service Chair, predicted that the likelihood of U.S.
- President Donald Trump meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his trip to Asia has increased after the midterm elections.
- The analysis is that President Trump will focus on North Korea issues for diplomatic achievements.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
President Trump is scheduled to attend the Quad Summit and APEC Summit to be held in the Philippines and China in mid-November.
An American expert on the Korean peninsula predicts that there is an increased possibility that U.S. President Donald Trump will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his visit to Asia, including the Philippines and China, in the middle of this month.
Victor Cha, the Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said at CSIS's online press briefing on "Prospects for President Trump's Asia Trip" on the 9th (local time) that "I think the possibility of President Trump and Chairman Kim meeting has increased after the midterm elections."
Chairman Cha explained that after the midterm elections, “The president will focus on many things, but one of them is building up his achievements,” adding, “This applies not only to things like changing the names of buildings, golf courses, and airports in Washington DC, but also in the field of diplomacy.”
He continued, “North Korea is clearly the area in which President Trump personally invested a lot of time during his two terms in office,” and predicted, “There is no one within the U.S. government who makes policy toward North Korea other than the president. Therefore, I believe President Trump will focus on that issue.”
Cha also said, “If North Korea was considering a North Korea-U.S. summit, their plan was always to wait until after the midterm elections. They see President Trump as perhaps weaker, more vulnerable, and an easier target.”
“I’m sure there will be a continued desire on their part to at least reconnect with President Trump and make sure he doesn’t act as unpredictable as he did in Iran or Venezuela,” he said.
President Trump will attend the Quad (security consultative body of the United States, Japan, Australia, and India) summit and the ASEAN summit in Manila, Philippines on the 17th and 18th.
Next, on the 18th and 19th, we will participate in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit held in Shenzhen, China. There are speculations that he may use this visit to Asia to meet Chairman Kim.
Open Questions
- Will a meeting between the leaders of North Korea and North Korea actually take place?
- What specific impact will the midterm election results have on North Korea policy?
