US-DPRK Summit the Result of Months of Secret Negotiations and US Pressure

There is an interesting read in the Joong Ang Ilbo about how secret talks between the US and North Korea led by the CIA have been going on for months that combined with the US pressure campaign helped lead to the current Kim-Trump summit:

Since last year, the United States has been aware of North Korea’s intent to resolve the nuclear crisis through a summit, a diplomatic source told the JoongAng Ilbo on Monday, contradicting the idea that U.S. President Donald Trump impulsively decided to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

“Using its own channels between the United States and the North, Washington detected last year Pyongyang’s idea that only a summit can resolve the issues,” said the source. He added that the North was persistent with the idea of a “top-down” approach and the U.S. leadership, including Trump, was frequently briefed about the situation.

Washington, however, didn’t pursue the idea of a meeting because it was implementing its “maximum pressure” campaign and because it was unsure of Pyongyang’s authenticity. The United States, therefore, decided to wait until North Korea offered talks.

“The United States believed that the appropriate timing would come when the North felt unmanageable pressure,” he said.

After the North decided to participate in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Washington and Pyongyang began secret contacts, around Jan. 20, the source said.

The contacts became more active after the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) got information that the North wanted to have a meeting with Vice President Mike Pence on the sidelines of the opening ceremony in February. The State Department was completely excluded from the process, the source said.   [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read more at the link, but this helps explain why CIA Director Mike Pompeo was moved over to be the Secretary of State.  The CIA has been the lead with ongoing secret negotiations with North Korea and moving Pompeo over to the State Department will bring them someone the Kim regime may already be comfortable interacting with prior to the summit.