Return to starting line

US, North Korea need to make substantive progress

The historic meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jongun at the inter-Korean border, Sunday, has provided fresh momentum for their countries' denuclearization talks.

They agreed to resume working-level negotiations in a few weeks, a major turnaround in the stalled dialogue over North Korea's nuclear arsenal. The U.S. and North Korea are expected to follow up on the agreement soon. First they will exchange lists of negotiators. It is widely anticipated that special representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun will lead the U.S. delegation and First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choe Sonhui will lead the North Korean side.

The two sides will soon hold their first official negotiations since the second summit between Trump and Kim in Hanoi in February ended without an agreement. The envisioned talks will largely focus on narrowing gaps over the scope and terms of Pyongyang's denuclearization steps and what incentives Washington can offer in return. It will surely be a long process with a lot of ups and downs.

After his talks with Kim at the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), Trump made it clear that he will be in no rush to strike a deal. "Speed is not the object. We want to see if we can do a really comprehensive, good deal," he said.

The symbolic meeting between Trump and Kim raised expectations for meaningful progress in the nuclear talks. This was possible thanks to the personal trust between the leaders.

Officially, however, Washington is still pursuing a "comprehensive deal" with the North. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted hours after the DMZ meeting that all sanctions on North Korea will remain in place before complete and verifiable denuclearization.

However, Pyongyang appears to be sticking to partial denuclearization, which critics say reflects Kim's strategy to draw more concessions for security guarantees and economic aid.

During the Hanoi summit, Kim reportedly offered to dismantle the Yongbyon nuclear complex in return for sanctions relief. Trump rejected this, citing an intelligence report about hidden nuclear sites in the North. His insistence on closing only Yongbyon was insufficient for the U.S. to lift sanctions.

The U.S. wants the North to declare its nuclear stockpile, a crucial step to map out a denuclearization roadmap. The key is whether the North will agree to that.

In this regard, the implications of Sunday's headlines-grabbing meeting at the DMZ should not be exaggerated. The agreement is merely a return to the starting line. Peace will remain fragile without a substantive agreement by the two sides.

So it is crucial to make substantive progress in the planned working-level talks to move the peace process forward. only good results can pave the way for another summit between Trump and Kim in Washington, as Trump offered.