Is there room for multilateral talks about the Korean Peninsula?

World
Europe

By CGTN's World Insight

Starting with a surprise meeting between Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing and a special performance from Republic of Korea (ROK) performers in Pyongyang, there appears to be momentum in conversations about the Korean Peninsula.

What's the significance of these summits? How does the Korean Peninsula influence the world's most powerful countries? Jenny Town, an assistant director of the US-Korea Institute at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, shared her thoughts with CGTN World Insight.

"I think one thing we should keep in mind is that as much as we want North Korea [DPRK] to [be] denuclearized, we should be serious about this and to make a substantial move, it's not going to come free," said Town.

The potential for multilateral talks depends on what happens at the summit meetings, with Town optimistically stating, "if things are going down the right pace, there is room for renewing multilateral talks."

"Right now, these bilateral dialogues are going on, simply to re-establish relations, because North Korea [DPRK] has become such a priority over the past year."

In ROK, there will be room for instant multilateral talks between the US, China, DPRK, and Russia. Since Russia is a major player in this process, "we have to get things moving first. The ROK is very smart to start that process, especially to avoid conflict in the region at a time when tensions were so high," said Town.

Town concluded, "If we can get all of the leaders on board and the high-level agreement what it is trying to accomplish, I think it opens the door for other types of arrangements – multilateral, four-party, five-party or six-party. "

(World Insight with Tian Wei is a 45-minute global affairs and debate show on CGTN. It airs weekdays at 10:15 p.m. BJT (1415GMT), with rebroadcasts at 4:15 a.m. BJT (2015GMT).)