How to Score the U.S.-DPRK Hanoi Summit
Sang Hyun Lee
Summary: U.S. President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un will soon meet for the 2nd U.S.-DPRK summit in Hanoi. How should we score the outcome of this historic meeting? The bottom-line for the success of the Hanoi summit is that it should contain substantial progress in relation to the Singapore statement last year. Most importantly, many experts envision a deal in which North Korea pledges complete and verifiable dismantlement of the Yongbyon nuclear facilities in exchange for a partial lifting of economic sanctions. At this stage, it is very important for South Korea to share the firm goal of ‘complete denuclearization’ of North Korea with key players in this negotiation. South Korea can contribute to make North Korea take further denuclearization measures by showing clearly the benefits of inter-Korean economic cooperation once North Korea makes serious progress in their denuclearization efforts.
Related Publications
-
Towards a New Conflict Management System on the Korean Peninsula: A Military Perspective
In this essay, Major General (ret.) Mats Engman assesses the lack of a viable conflict management system on the Korean Peninsula. While the nearly seven decades-old Armistice Agreement and focus […]
-
The Dynamics of Democratized South Korean Foreign Policy in the Post-Cold War Era
In 1987, South Korea initiated a successful transition to democracy that has played a critical role in determining the government’s domestic and foreign policy. Paradoxically, the dynamics of the democratized […]
-
The art of compromise: picking up the pieces after Hanoi
The no-deal outcome between US President Donald Trump and North Korea’s Chairman Kim Jong-un at the Hanoi summit in February was regarded by most as a failure. This is accurate […]
-
Economic Cooperation Can’t Lead to Denuclearization
Summary: A long-awaited second Trump-Kim summit will be held in Hanoi soon. Despite the high expectations, experts are worrying about the possibility that the summit will end in a ‘small deal’ […]
-
North Korea’s Nuclear Ambitions Have Turned Into a Status-Quo Show
With Kim Jong-un’s reported reappearance after speculation about his health, a top-down diplomacy, driven by President Donald Trump and Kim, still remains the main channel for future nuclear talks. Despite […]
-
China’s Evolving North Korea Policy
The Center would like to acknowledge that this publication was generously supported by the Korea Foundation. Introduction* It would seem common sense that China’s policies seldom change due to its […]