12:56, 02-Jun-2018
Korean Peninsula Diplomacy: Ups and downs ahead of Kim-Trump summit
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The past two weeks have been a whirlwind of changes when it comes to the highly anticipated summit. But as it stands, the summit will go through. Here's a look back at the various turnarounds, and diplomatic efforts.
On May 16th, the DPRK cancelled high-level talks with South Korea, and threatened to reconsider the summit with the US, blaming Washington's military drills and reckless statements. On May 24th, President Trump cancelled the summit, blaming "tremendous anger and open hostility" from the North.
Just two days later, Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, met for surprise talks on the northern side of the truce village Panmunjom, trying to put the summit back on track. From Wednesday to Friday, delegations from the DPRK and the US met at the Korean DMZ and in Singapore respectively.
On May 30th, top DPRK official Kim Yong Chol met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York. Pompeo described their talks about denuclearization as being "substantive". Afterwards, Kim Yong Chol met with Trump in Washington. Trump said, "it's a great start".