The Pyeongchang Winter Olympics closed on Sunday, but the games may have opened the door for dialogue between the United States and North Korea.
Following a meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean representatives, the South Korean government announced that North Korea was willing to have talks with the United States, agreeing that its relations with the U.S. should improve alongside relations with South Korea.
The White House, which announced a new round of sanctions against North Korean trade and shipping on Friday, responded that any talks must lead to an end to North Korea’s nuclear program.
With joint U.S. – South Korea military drills scheduled to begin on April 1, there is an immediate window for such talks to begin.
We asked Ambassador Joseph DeTrani, former U.S. Special Envoy for Six-Party Talks with North Korea, to comment. His thoughts are adapted below for print.
North Korea's decision to send General Kim Yong Chol, former chief of military intelligence and Vice Chairmen of the Party's Central Committee responsible for inter-Korean relations, for the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympics was a calculated and gutsy decision. It permitted North Korea to maintain the momentum following the visit of Kim Yo Jung, the sister of Kim Jung Un, to the opening ceremony of the Olympics, when President Moon Jae in was invited to North Korea for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jung Un.
Kim Yong Chol's reported statement that Kim Jung Un wanted to improve relations with the U.S. and had "ample intentions of holding talks" with the U.S. was a skillful attempt to project a conciliatory image, thus putting the pressure on the U.S. to not oppose an inter-Korean summit while also being amenable to unconditional talks with the U.S., in an effort to eventually relieve some of the pain on North Korea caused by upgraded sanctions and intensified joint military exercises.
Given this scenario, any talks with a North Korea now apparently willing to enter into unconditional talks with the U.S. could result in a temporary halt to missile launches and nuclear tests, in return for a scaling back of scheduled joint military exercises. If this transpires, then it's possible and likely that negotiations with North Korea could be reconstituted, to include Japan, China and Russia, in addition to the U.S. and South Korea.
In that context, one would hope that the U.S. et al would reintroduce the Joint Statement of September 2005 that committed North Korea to complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of its nuclear programs in return for security assurances, a peace treaty, liaison offices and other deliverables, with the ultimate goal of a more normal relationship with the U.S. This was the legacy of Kim Jung Un's father, Kim Jong il.
If Kim Yong Chol's visit results in U.S.- North Korea talks and a North-South summit, this will be the beginning of a long and often frustrating negotiation process with a North Korea currently determined to retain its nuclear weapons. Our collective task will be to convince the regime in Pyongyang that a denuclearized Korean Peninsula will benefit North Korea significantly, despite the negative examples of Moammar Gadhafi in Libya and Saddam Hussein in Iraq, who gave up their quest for nuclear weapons and eventually were eliminated. North Korea is different and Kim Jung Un should be convinced and thus confident that more normal relations with the U.S. will benefit North Korea.
