Canceling Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s trip to North Korea Aug. 24, 72-year-old President Donald Trump answered his critics, complaining about a lack of follow up on denuclearization. When Trump met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in Singapor, Malaysia June 12, both parties signed a joint declaration agreeing to work toward denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. Kim agreed in principle to disarm his nukes and ballistic missiles in exchange for Trump delivering sanctions relief and eventual economic development to one of the world’s poorest regimes. Since the summit ended June 12, the press complained about a lack of results from Kim on the nuclear disarmament issue. Trump’s media critics have questioned what good the summit did when Kim was refusing to give up his nukes and ballistic missiles, something defying Trump’s claims of progress.
South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyund-hwa expressed regrets that Trump cancelled the meeting with Pyongyang, believing that more dialogue builds trust leading to a peace treaty. Criticizing China for not playing a more active role in the negotiations, Trump said Beijing could do more to bring Kim to the peace table. “The U.S. statement violates basic facts and is irresponsible,” said the Chinese Foreign Minister. “We are seriously concerned about it and have made solemn representations to the U.S.
side,” said China’s Foreign Ministry. Instead of showing patience for what looks like a lengthy process, the American press does nothing but criticize Trump for failing to get Kim to disarm his nukes and ballistic missiles. Unable to stop playing politics, the press wants to slam Trump for already pulling off the impossible, holding a productive summit with the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea [DPRK].
Calling off Pompeo’s visit, Trump hopes to get denculearization talks moving again. North Korean officials accused the U.S. of “gangster”-like behavior, pushing too hard to get Kim to denuclearize. With Kim having no other leverage, the DPRK fears that if they give up their nukes and ballistic missiles too soon, Trump would have too much leverage. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry insists that Beijing will continue to play an important part of disarmament diplomacy. When Kim returned the remains of U.S. Korean War soldiers July 26, he fulfilled a promise at the June 12 summit. Yet the press only rips Trump for not getting any results. When you consider that no other American president had ever met with a North Korean dictator since the July 27, 1953 end to the Korean War, Trump pulled of a remarkable feat. Yet the press has nothing but criticism for the president.
Beijing’s Foreign Ministry urged Trump to keep meeting with North Korean leaders, insisting China’s playing a “constructive role” in North Korea’s disarmament. “It is most important to maintain a long-term view while maintaining momentum for dialogue and concentrate on diplomatic efforts to faithfully implement the agreements from the summit between South Korea and North Korea and between North Korean and the United States, instead of attaching meaning to each change in the situation,” said the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Chinese officials want the U.S. to continue working on diplomacy with Pyongyang Responding the U.S. press, Trump cancelled the Pompeo’s meeting, rather than letting the Secretary of State work his magic. Why the press shows so little patience when it comes to North Korea is anyone’s guess. Most likely it’s about politics, discrediting Trump.
When it comes to press bias against Trump, the North Korean situation offers a prime example of how it works. Instead of letting Trump and Pompeo work on resolving the nuke and ballistic missile issues, the press is too caught up with proving Trump’s incompetence. Canceling Pompeo’s upcoming meeting with North Korean officials, the press can only offer more criticism, suggesting that Trump grossly exaggerated any results in North Korea. With no other American president meeting with North Korea, Trump’s the first to meet directly with a North Korean leader. Kim wants the U.S. to reduce its sanctions before agreeing to disarm its nukes and ballistic missiles. Pompeo looks inclined to work on a peace deal while, simultaneously, phasing out some of the crippling economic sanctions. Without press support, Trump sees no reason to move forward on more face-to-face meetings.
Trump’s decision to cut off talks with North Korea hopes to get Kim’s regime working on nuclear disarmament, per the Jun2 12 summit. China and South Korean urge the White House to hold more meetings regardless of whether it leads to immediate results. Building more trust-and-rapport requires face-to-face talks before Kim’s ready to finally start the process of nuclear disarmament. South Korean President Moon Jae-in thinks the more Washington.- Pyongyang meetings, the more likely North Korea will consider nuclear disarmament. Trump will no doubt resume sending Pompeo to Pyongyang at some point, whether or not he gets the reassurance that about Kim’s nuclear disarmament. Focusing on a peace treaty without any preconditions would be a good starting point, eventually paving the way for disarmament talks. If the press would cut Trump some slack, it would help get results.
