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| This combination of images shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, and President Donald Trump during their Feb. 28 meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam. AP-Yonhap |
By Kim Yoo-chul
South Korea will ask the United States to reconsider its "all-or-nothing" or "big deal" approach toward denuclearizing North Korea, according to Cheong Wa Dae officials, Monday.
They said the South will help North Korea and the U.S. find common ground for a "good enough deal."
In Hanoi, U.S. President Donald Trump said he understands "why no deal is better than a bad deal, which I agree in principle," a senior official said on condition of anonymity. "But the all-or-nothing strategy needs to be reconsidered. In order to see meaningful progress in the denuclearization talks, there should be first trust-building measures, which I will call an early harvest."
The official said it is time to pursue "something more manageable" as some workable deals could revive the momentum for stalled denuclearization talks.
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"Despite the failure of the Hanoi summit, diplomacy between North Korea and the U.S. still works," the official said. "Having early harvest could build trust between the two leaders and can lead to a better deal."
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| In this April 8, 2012, file photo, a soldier stands in front of the Unha-3 rocket at a launching site in Tongchang-ri, North Korea. AP-Yonhap |
North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui said the country has "no intention to yield to U.S. demands in any form, nor are we willing to engage in negotiations of this kind." Another Cheong Wa Dae official said the United States and North Korea are keeping open the possibility of continued talks.
Medium-scale bureaucratic deals by definition are much easier. As the stakes are lower, so are the risks. Also, medium-scale deals are easier to verify, which is an important issue given the North's deception in the past and Pyongyang's sensitivity to inspectors, according to Robert Kelly, a professor of international relations at Pusan National University.
The Cheong Wa Dae officials said President Moon Jae-in will play a role as "facilitator" not just as "mediator" in advancing the denuclearization talks and hinted at holding another inter-Korean summit. But they didn't elaborate.
Still, the United States is hardening its position following the Hanoi meeting. Top U.S. officials said Washington wouldn't lift sanctions until Pyongyang "completes the denuclearization process," though they said there are other areas than lifting sanctions that the United States may provide.
North Korea is seeking sanctions relief before it takes any further steps to dismantle its nuclear program. In Hanoi, the United States refused the North's offer to completely dismantle its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon in exchange for some sanctions relief. Seoul asked Washington to grant approval for an early resumption of frozen inter-Korean economic projects such as the reopening of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex as a "small reciprocal measure" to keep the talks momentum alive.
Since the Hanoi summit, U.S. officials have threatened to further expand sanctions, while commercial satellite images indicated Pyongyang could be preparing a missile test or satellite launch.
Presidential adviser Moon Chung-in said applying pressure and shattering a delicate and deteriorating diplomatic process are essential for the resuscitation of negotiations, adding the key way to derail the nuclear talks and precipitate a potential catastrophe would be for Pyongyang to engage in any nuclear or missile tests.
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