Man in the Middle With the Fate of Two Koreas at Stake: Again, Whom Do We Believe and Trust

World Watches: Millions of lives at stake. Who will bring lasting Peace

More updated information on the NK-Pompeo nuke talk and this if added to the previous one below:

(Bloomberg News) – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo went to Pyongyang to get Kim Jong Un to give up his nuclear weapons. He left with a harsh reminder that the North Korean leader expects something in return.

Pompeo summed up his 27 hours in the North Korean capital as “productive” but NK called the visit “regretful.”

Then no sooner had Pompeo left when Kim’s media published a statement saying the U.S. “unilateral and gangster-like demand for denuclearization risked upending ties” (less than a month after Trump and Kim shook hands in Singapore).

But, the next line of that more than 1,200-word NK statement may have captured the central complaint: “The U.S. side never mentioned the issue of establishing a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, which is essential for defusing tension and preventing a war.”

The NK official statement shows that Kim is willing to test Trump’s patience and not bargain away his arsenal without sufficient security guarantees and Kim believes that the weapons are needed to deter a U.S. attack and that view dates back nearly 70 years to the still-unresolved Korean War issue (only a ceasefire remains in place – not an official peace treaty), so it will take more than a handshake to dispel that attitude.

“Better Relationship”

Eric Gomez, foreign policy analyst at the Cato Institute in Washington said: “The president and high-ranking officials have been talking about this very quick timeline and are focused on the nuclear issue only, and not on the broader situation. Realistically, the only way you get to a denuclearized North Korea is if it has a better relationship with the United States.”

The vague 1 1/2 page agreement Kim and Trump signed in Singapore on June 12 called for “establishing a new relationship and a lasting and stable peace regime,” but “to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” was in fact listed third. Rolling back America’s nuclear umbrella or pulling back its troops from South Korea is risky. Kim’s desire for a broader security realignment explains why he agreed to “denuclearization and not disarmament” that Trump thinks he will get.

Trump has faced criticism already for being too quick to make security concessions to Kim, including his unilateral suspension of military exercises with South Korea and a few other concessions. That NK statement also indicated that such gestures hadn’t gone far enough, saying the U.S. moves were “highly reversible, leaving its military force intact without scraping even a rifle.”

“Good Faith”

That same NK official statement also included a personal appeal to Trump: “We still cherish our good faith in President Trump” it concluded. 

Du Yeon Kim, a visiting fellow at the Korean Peninsula Future Forum in Seoul, said in an email: “Their statement is typical North Korean negotiating style. The administration should press on with talks and expect more stumbling blocks along the way, but it must be careful that nuclear talks aren’t held hostage to peace talks.”

My 2 Cents: Trump the great negotiator right in full bloom – let’s just call this another Trump WTF moment without any question.

Those who know NK and their “deal making tactics” are well known, but it seems like those close to and advising Trump are not that savvy (i.e., Pence, Pompeo, Mattis, and certainly Bolton, known as a staunch regime change war hawk – bombs first, maybe talk later).

The road ahead is unsure and rocky and full of potholes as well as doubt and uncertainty. Time will tell, but knowing Trump and his style, time may not be on our side. Stay tuned for sure.

Thanks for stopping by.

Maybe this is the more appropriate label for Trump:

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Updated information on the post that follows:

Seoul/Tokyo (Reuters): North Korea accused the U.S. of making “gangster-like demands in talks over its nuclear program,” which contradicts Secretary of State Pompeo just hours after he said the old enemies had made progress on key issues.

Daniel Russel, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia until last year said: “The North Koreans are in the game to get, not to give. They have gotten us (1) to back off military exercises; (2) to back off using CVID (*Complete Verifiable Irreversible Dismantlement); (3) to back off the Libya model of rapid denuclearization; (4) to back off on human rights; and, (5) to look the other way while China relaxes sanctions implementation against them. So why wouldn't Kim Jong-un dig in his heels with Pompeo and press his advantages?”

Abraham Denmark, a senior defense official for East Asia under former President Barack Obama, said: “This is a rejection of U.S. demands for unilateral denuclearization by North Korea, and a clear message that the U.S. will need to give up more to make progress.”

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said: “Secretary Pompeo had been very firm on three basic goals: (1) complete denuclearization of North Korea, (2) security assurances, and (3) repatriation of remains of Americans killed in the 1950-53 Korean War. The proposed July 12 meeting, in the DMZ would be at working level and involve U.S. Defense Department officials.” Pompeo had previously announced that the two sides agreed to hold discussions on July 12 on repatriation, and also discussed modalities for destruction of a missile engine testing facility.

For their part of “giving” the North only offered to discuss one main issue: That the U.S. issue a formal declaration that ends the 1950-53 Korean War marking the upcoming anniversary of the armistice agreement (July 27, 1953), but the U.S. has showed little interest, thus giving “certain conditions and excuses,” said the KCNA broadcast.

My 2 cents on this further update: There are surprises here – all thanks to the Trump “deals” made and promised to Kim in Singapore with Kim offering, well, nothing concrete. So, what is next in Trump’s magical deal making bag of tricks? Recall that he said in a string of speeches that he is the best deal maker/negotiator ever? 

See his remarks below in the video - his words early in the tape. Simple label which I call: “A crock.”

FYI: Deals with NK are not like real-estate deals, Mr. President, not one bit.

More apropos: “Art of the Con” the label I prefer

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ORIGINAL POST FROM HERE:

NK and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit not so good results as the Washington Post reports here and a short video clip from MSNBC at Mediaite here.

Highlights – as many who know North Korea predicted this probably would happen when dealing with them and their own version of “Art of the Deal.”

From the Washington Post:

TOKYO — Hours after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hailed his two-day visit to Pyongyang as a “productive round of good-faith negotiations,” North Korea on then sharply criticized U.S. negotiators’ attitude during the talks as “regrettable and robber-like,” accusing the United States of making unilateral demands to denuclearize.

The remarks exposed the fragility surrounding discussions at the center of President Trump's foreign policy, raising questions about Pyongyang’s intentions and whether the North Korean Foreign Ministry’s statement represents a temporary outburst or if it signified a deeper misunderstanding between the two negotiating teams.

The NK statement was issued by an unnamed spokesman and shared by the state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA). They said the United States violated the spirit of the June 12 Singapore summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. 

It contradicted statements made earlier by Pompeo, who signaled the visit made “progress on almost all of the central issues.”

At the same time, North Korea said it still wants to build on the “friendly relationship and trust that Trump and Kim created during the Singapore gathering.”

Note: Pompeo did not meet with the North Korean leader during this visit and did not secure a shared understanding of the path to denuclearization either.

Noteworthy: Pompeo told reporters that the two countries would soon hold working-level talks on the destruction of Pyongyang’s testing facility for missile engines. He also said Pentagon officials will meet with their North Korean counterparts on or around July 12 at the DMZ between the two Koreas to discuss the return of U.S. military personnel who died during the Korean War.

Note: Last month, Trump told a crowd of supporters that the remains of 200 service members had “been sent back,” but U.S. military officials later said that was not the case.

U.S. officials viewed the issue as an easy confidence-building measure to demonstrate North Korea’s sincerity and have been frustrated with the speed of Pyongyang’s follow-through.

Pompeo said the issues of the testing facility and recovering U.S. remains still need to be finalized and added: “We now have a meeting set up for July 12 — it could move by one day or two — where there will be discussions between the folks responsible for the repatriation of remains.”

My 2 cents: Not much to add to this except to say NK always deals in the long game to get what they want not necessarily what we want from them.

They like bits and pieces and have a long history or backpedaling and double dealing that proves they are cunning negotiators and now are up against the best deal maker in the world, right? At least by his own measurement I mean Donald J. Trump – we are about to mind out. Stay tuned – the hype and heat and tweets might increase in rapid order.

And, for the TV host at MSNBC seen in that short clip above: It’s Pyongyang – the capital of North Korea NOT “Pyongchang” as she said the name a couple of times.

Thanks for stopping by.