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Opinion | US may still get another chance of a denuclearisation deal with North Korea this year
- Positive noises from Pyongyang’s foreign vice-minister and Donald Trump’s sacking of John Bolton bode well for progress
- However, it was a mistake for Trump to express openness to another summit with Kim Jong-un before making diplomatic progress
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The United States may be about to get another chance at working towards a limited agreement with North Korea before the year ends. Two developments point to this possibility.
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First, on September 9 – North Korea’s foundation day – Choe Son-hui, the country’s foreign vice-minister, said talks with the US could resume later this month. “We have willingness to sit with the US side for comprehensive discussion,” Choe said.
Her remark suggested that the outcome of the June 30 meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could begin to be realised. At that June meeting, the two leaders had agreed to resume working-level talks.
The second development suggesting US hopes of reaching an agreement could be revived was the sacking of John Bolton, Trump’s third national security adviser and a well-known hawk who opposed any deal with North Korea that did not include an agreement from Pyongyang to totally disarm itself of nuclear weapons and missiles.
The prospect of a US-North Korea deal would attract regional support. China, Russia and certainly South Korea would welcome any limited agreement. For Beijing, the prospect of a serious Washington-Pyongyang working-level process would also present a source of useful potential leverage over the US, given China’s ability to serve as a potential spoiler.
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