President Trump is looking for a quick diplomatic win:
Mr. Chairman, Joe Biden may be Sleepy and Very Slow, but he is not a “rabid dog.” He is actually somewhat better than that, but I am the only one who can get you where you have to be. You should act quickly, get the deal done. See you soon! https://t.co/kO2k14lTf7
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 17, 2019
The AP is reporting on North Korean reaction – or perhaps pouncing – to this latest overture:
North Korea on Monday responded to a tweet by U.S. President Donald Trump that hinted at another summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, saying it has no interest in giving Trump further meetings to brag about unless it gets something substantial in return.
The statement by Foreign Ministry adviser Kim Kye Gwan is the latest call by North Korea for U.S. concessions ahead of an end-of-year deadline set by Kim Jong Un for the Trump administration to offer mutually acceptable terms for a deal to salvage nuclear diplomacy.
This could be an underrated story, because if Trump becomes desperate for another bit of smoke to distract from his meltdown in Washington, he might knuckle-under to North Korean demands and really give away the store.
“Three rounds of DPRK-U.S. summit meetings and talks were held since June last year, but no particular improvement has been achieved in the DPRK-U.S. relations … the U.S. only seeks to earn time, pretending it has made progress in settling the issue of the Korean Peninsula,” he said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, referring to North Korea by the initials of its formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“We are no longer interested in such talks that bring nothing to us. As we have got nothing in return, we will no longer gift the U.S. president with something he can boast of, but get compensation for the successes that President Trump is proud of as his administrative achievements.”
I think this is a message to Trump that North Korea won’t help him retain his office without a big present for them, unearned and dangerous as it is. They know that Trump is inexperienced, incurious, temperamental, and won’t listen to advisors and experts – it’s their chance to take advantage of an amateur so hapless that he has no idea just how much he’s failing.
Let’s hope there’s still something left in the picnic basket by the time we’re rid of him.
