Tag: Kim Jong-un

Trump has already identified something that many people do not realize about Kim Jong-un, he is not crazy, he is very smart:

As US President Donald Trump has hinted at attempting a fresh summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, South Korea is likely to confront more complicated diplomatic developments concerning US relations with North Korea.

When asked during a Fox News interview that aired Thursday, Trump said he would reach out to Kim again in his second term. “He liked me and I got along with him,” Trump said. “He is not a religious zealot. He happens to be a smart guy.”

Trump’s comment marked the first time he explicitly expressed his willingness to resume talks with Kim since he took office Monday.

Trump’s new overture for bromance diplomacy came at a time when the US is expected to try to resolve the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The situation in Ukraine is already complicated because North Korea has sent its troops to Russia to help fight Ukraine, according to Seoul’s National Intelligence Service.

Korea Herald

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If the focus of a summit is denuclearization of North Korea it would be a pointless meeting because Kim Jong-un will never agree to getting rid of his nukes. However, negotiating away his ICBM program and stopping proliferation I think are achievable goals:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may seek another summit over its nuclear program with US President-elect Donald Trump following his second-term win, but the chances for a meaningful deal appear to be lower, given the North’s enhanced nuclear capabilities, analysts said.

During his first term, Trump hosted the first-ever summit between American and North Korean leaders with Kim in Singapore in 2018, followed by another summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, the next year. But they failed to produce a deal to curb North Korea’s nuclear program.

Korea Herald

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NK leader visits flood-stricken region

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announces measures to support flood victims during his visit to a temporary shelter in Uiju County in North Pyongan Province in this photo released by the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 10, 2024. (Yonhap)

It is pretty clear if Kim Jong-un wants something he will get it despite the sanctions on North Korea:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appears to be using a new model of a Mercedes-Benz SUV in a move snubbing international sanctions banning North Korea’s imports of luxury items.

Photos carried by the Korean Central News Agency on Saturday showed a black Mercedes-Benz SUV on a special train that Kim used to visit flood-hit areas of Uiju County in the northwestern province of North Phyongan last week.

The SUV is presumed to be the top-class model of the face-lifted Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 4MATIC that was launched in April in South Korea. The price tag started at 279 million won (US$204,000).

Yonhap

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N. Korean leader inspects flood-hit areas

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (sitting) inspects the Air Force’s rescue work during a visit to flood-hit areas in Sinuiju and Uiju, North Pyongan Province, on July 28, 2024, in this photo provided by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency. (Yonhap)

North Korea’s statement is not entirely true because Trump and Kim’s personal relationship ushered in an era where there was far less provocations and antagonism compared to prior years:

North Korea on Tuesday dismissed former US President Donald Trump’s repeated boasts about his close relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as a “lingering desire,” stating that their personal bond did not bring about “any substantial positive change.”

The statement, delivered through the state-run Korean Central News Agency, which is tailored more to external audiences than domestic ones, marked Pyongyang’s first official reaction to Trump’s campaign trail remarks. (…..)

“It is true that Trump, when he was president, tried to reflect the special personal relations between the heads of states in the relations between states, but he did not bring about any substantial positive change,” the commentary read.

“The foreign policy of a state and personal feelings must be strictly distinguished,” it added.

Pyongyang reiterated its stance that the ball is in the US court, urging the US to abandon what it labeled as a “hostile policy” toward North Korea in the commentary. Pyongyang considers the US extended deterrence commitment to South Korea in response to mounting threats from North Korea, such as the deployment of US strategic assets to the peninsula, as part of the hostile policy.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.