President Donald Trump has informed North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that he will not be attending the summit between the two leaders set to take place in Singapore on June 12, following a series of aggressive statements made by both parties. It is not yet clear whether the cancellation of the high-stakes summit marks a temporary diplomatic setback, or the end of a period of progress toward peace—and potentially the beginning of more nuclear and ballistic missile tests by the North Korea.
In a personal letter by President Trump addressed to Kim Jong Un and shared with the media, President Trump said his decision was “based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement.”
It is believed that the President was referring to comments by North Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui calling recent comments made by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence in which he referenced ‘the Libyan model,’ as ‘ignorant and stupid’ Ms. Choe added, “Whether the U.S. will meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown is entirely dependent upon the decision and behavior of the United States,” and—for the second time—threatened North Korea would pull out of the upcoming summit.
Amb. Joseph DeTrani, a Cipher Brief Expert who served as Special Envoy for the Six Party Talks with North Korea and has extensive experience navigating the back and forth, sees it this way:
“President Donald Trump's letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un canceling the June 12 summit was unexpected, given recent statements from the President and Secretary Mike Pompeo that the U.S. wanted to move forward with the Summit. However, the bombastic statement yesterday from North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, saying North Korea can "meet in a meeting room or at a nuclear-to-nuclear showdown" was way over the top, as was her comment about Vice President Pence. Additionally, according to Secretary Pompeo, North Korea was not responding to U.S. requests for preparatory meetings in Singapore to prepare for the Summit. For these apparent reasons, the President's decision to cancel the summit was not too surprising.
In my view, Kim Jong Un was aware of the critical statement from his Vice Foreign Minister. The question, then, is why did he permit her to use that language when he was on the cusp of having a meeting with President Donald Trump? Kim seemingly was prepared for this summit and knew clearly that comprehensive, verifiable, irreversible dismantlement (CVID) was the U.S. position — which it has been since 1994. Kim also knew that he would be receiving the security assurances and a path to normal relations with the U.S., which is what he wants. So why blow it with such a provocative and insulting letter from his Vice Foreign Minister? It's possible Kim may have had second thoughts about signing up to CVID. He may have been advised to push for retention of some nuclear weapons capability, which he knew would be a nonstarter with the U.S., especially after two meetings with Secretary Pompeo when he was told that CVID was our policy, in return for security assurances and other tangible deliverables Kim wanted.”
According to DeTrani, the cancellation of the talks does not mean an end to a potential diplomatic outcome. In fact, he sees reasons for both parties to keep talking.
“The door is not closed to further discussions with North Korea. If Kim wants North Korea to be a normal state with a robust economy, with normal relations with the U.S., then it's in North Korea's interest to ensure that the door is open to continued discussions with the U.S.”
