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| ▲ This file photo, released by Reuters, shows U.S. President Donald Trump signing documents in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on Jan. 20, 2025. (Yonhap) |
expert-Trump-NK diplomacy
Expert expects 'no N. Korea detente' during Trump's 1st month in office
By Song Sang-ho
WASHINGTON, Jan. 23 (Yonhap) -- A think tank expert has anticipated no "detente" between the United States and North Korea in new U.S. President Donald Trump's first month in office, pointing to the recalcitrant regime's advancing nuclear capabilities and growing ties with Russia.
In an opinion piece in The Hill, a U.S. media outlet, Ransom Miller, a research associate at the Institute for Global Affairs, put the North Korea issue on a list of what might happen in Trump's first month in command of America's foreign policy. The list included tariffs levied against U.S. neighbors first and continued aid to Ukraine.
"Today, North Korea's nuclear missile capabilities have grown and its burgeoning entente with Russia has encouraged it to deploy troops to assist in the invasion of Ukraine," Miller wrote.
"With more partners available to it and a more secure nuclear position, it's unlikely that Kim will be eager to return to the table with Trump, which bore little fruit the last time around," he added.
He noted that when Trump took office for his first term in 2017, he put North Korea among his top foreign policy priorities, and that his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was close.
"But don't expect that to be as meaningful during this term in office. North Korea is one of the most isolated countries in the world, and it was at a diplomatic nadir with its sole ally China in the late 2010s," Miller said. "During that era, it made sense to pursue talks with America."
On Monday, Trump called North Korea a "nuclear power," while saying that Kim might be happy to see his political comeback.
His remarks added to lingering speculation that Trump might seek to revive his summit diplomacy with Kim given that he repeatedly boasted about his personal ties with the reclusive leader.
During his first term, Trump had three meetings with Kim -- the first-ever summit in Singapore in June 2018, the Hanoi summit in February 2019 and a meeting in the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom in June 2019. The U.S. and the North last held working-level nuclear talks in Stockholm in October 2019.
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