[Asia Economy Reporters Inho Yoo and Jieun Lee] The chief nuclear negotiators of South Korea and the United States, along with the intelligence chiefs of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan, will meet separately on the 18th in Washington, U.S., and Seoul to discuss ways to engage North Korea in dialogue. Since mid-month, a series of high-level consultations between South Korea and the U.S. have been underway, raising expectations for key cards to bring North Korea to the negotiating table, such as humanitarian aid and a declaration to formally end the Korean War. Experts point out that the critical factor will be any change in the U.S. stance.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Noh Kyu-duk, South Korea’s chief nuclear negotiator and head of the Korea Peninsula Peace Negotiation Headquarters, will meet with Sung Kim, the U.S. State Department’s Special Representative for North Korea, on the 18th (local time) in Washington for consultations. Following this, on the 19th, a trilateral meeting of the chief nuclear negotiators from South Korea, the U.S., and Japan, including Takehiro Funakoshi, Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will take place.
At the same time in Seoul, the intelligence chiefs of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan will hold a private meeting. Park Jie-won, Director of the National Intelligence Service of South Korea, will meet on the 18th (Korean time) with Avril Haines, Director of the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), and Hiroaki Takizawa, Cabinet Intelligence Officer of Japan. This is their first meeting in five months since their last gathering in Tokyo in May. The intelligence chiefs are expected to focus on North Korean issues, sharing assessments of recent developments on the Korean Peninsula, including North Korea’s missile tests.
The meetings of the chief nuclear negotiators and intelligence chiefs of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan follow a series of consecutive meetings, including Suh Hoon, Director of the National Security Office of South Korea, visiting the U.S. on the 12th, and William Burns, Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), visiting South Korea on the 15th. Attention is focused on whether these meetings can produce a clear breakthrough in dialogue with North Korea. In particular, from the South Korean government’s perspective, it is expected that they will actively seek support and cooperation from the U.S. and Japan regarding the declaration to formally end the Korean War, which President Moon Jae-in emphasized repeatedly at the United Nations General Assembly last month. From the U.S. standpoint, there is also a possibility that cooperation with South Korea and Japan to effectively check China will be brought to the dialogue table.
However, experts warn that if there is no meaningful change in the U.S. position on issues such as easing sanctions on North Korea, which North Korea demands, the talks may end up going in circles. Professor Kim Hyun-wook of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy analyzed, "Many interpret North Korea’s demand for the ‘abolition of hostile policies’ as a prelude to extracting sanctions relief, but the U.S. position is that it cannot provide sanctions relief in advance. From the U.S. perspective, acceptance will not be easy."
Meanwhile, on the same day, the Ministry of Unification stated in its '2021 National Assembly Audit Work Status Report' that "messages from Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of the Workers' Party, directed toward the U.S. are increasing," emphasizing the need to closely monitor North Korea’s follow-up actions toward the U.S.
The Ministry of Unification added, "Although instability on the Korean Peninsula continues, the fluidity of changes in the situation is also increasing, making it an important time for proactive responses aimed at steering the situation toward dialogue and engagement rather than military tension." It further stated, "Despite various differences in positions between the South and the North, since the communication hotline has been restored, the government intends to promote the establishment of a video conference system and resolve differences and issues through dialogue."
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