[Seoul Current Affairs] In response to US President Donald Trump's decision to reduce joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, sending a negative message to North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, the General Affairs Director of the ruling party gave an indifferent response, although he left room for dialogue. Kim Jong-un suffered the ``trauma'' of losing face when the U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, in February 2019 broke down. Now that it has the backing of China and Russia, it appears to be carefully assessing the United States' true intentions.
Trump wants to meet with Kim Jong Un within the year, but no positive response from North Korea
On the 19th, Yosho dismissed Trump's order to reduce U.S.-South Korea military drills, saying, ``It's not worth evaluating and I have no interest in it at all.'' At the same time, he also noted that Kim "personally has good memories and feelings" toward Trump.
At the 2019 summit, North Korea had hoped to reach an agreement to dismantle its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon in the northwestern region and lift sanctions, but this fell apart due to Trump's will. Enraged, Kim Jong-un criticized the party's United Front Department official who had supervised the meeting and fired him. There is also information that says, ``On the train on the way home, he beat up all the executives except Mr. Yo Jong,'' (a former South Korean government official). It is not hard to imagine that not only Kim Jong-un but also bureaucrats at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other places have a mentality that makes it difficult for them to enter into dialogue with Trump.
After that, North Korea approached Russia and concluded the Treaty of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2024. On the 19th, Yosho emphasized that Japan "bears unlimited responsibility for its obligations as a party to the alliance." In June of this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited North Korea. Sanctions are said to have been largely watered down due to close ties with China and Russia, and there is less incentive to negotiate with the United States than before.
Kim Dong-yo, a professor at North Korean Graduate University in South Korea, said, ``Mr. Yo Jong was trying to set the tone for an atmosphere in which U.S.-North Korea dialogue would become a fait accompli.''
On the other hand, the United States is virtually the only country that can guarantee North Korea's safety and standing in the international community. North Korea has not expressed its support for Iran, with which it has long-standing ties, and Hong, a senior research member at the Institute for Unification, analyzed that North Korea is ``caring about Mr. Trump.'' "The U.S.-North Korea relationship has entered a period of bargaining," he said.
North Korea, which views its nuclear possession as ``irreversible,'' is expected to keep an eye on whether the United States will abandon its stance of demanding denuclearization. If Trump, whose position has weakened due to the militarized military operations against Iran, decides that he is likely to compromise, he may try to find his way through working-level talks first.
