Trump made remarkable, even historic, progress with North Korea in a surprisingly short amount of time. Despite that, we all knew that the full road to sustainable peace would be neither short nor easily traversed. With such a long and rich history of insanity, the Kim regime and legacy won’t be overcome with anything less than a considerable effort from both sides.
Before we get into new developments, it’s important to take a perspective check. One year ago, “renewed hostility” with North Korea meant ballistic missile and nuclear weapon tests. It meant a legitimate threat to the peace and safety of every citizen on the planet. Today, “renewed hostility” refers to an angry letter. Better yet, it’s an angry letter with no known knowledge of actual threats of violence. That’s definitely progress.
It’s also important to remember the bottom line: Kim needs peace with the United States. This isn’t a whim. It isn’t an option that might help him. His back is against the wall. He is so desperate that he completely replaced the old guard before entering into initial negotiations. Without a peace and trade deal, North Korea will fall. Kim knows this. Trump knows this. Success is only a matter of patience at this point.
With all of that said, there is news on the negotiating front. You’ve possibly already heard that impending discussions between North Korean leadership and Mike Pompeo have been suspended. You might not know why. Those details are in this video, and when you can look past the history of tension in the situation, it’s almost funny.
