so the Hanoi summit collapsed in what was a dispiriting and to the high-stakes
meeting between the leaders of North Korea and the u.s. let's get some expert
analysis on the summit from Goa Myung Hyun research fellow at the asan
Institute for Policy Studies who joins us I'm happy to say in the studio this
morning thank you for being it thanks for having me
so not the result many were expecting or hoping for I was wanting to pick your
mind on your opinion of what we saw yesterday and do you think it
jeopardizes the chance for a third summit down the line I think it does I
think this time in the summit in Hanoi review the fundamental difference
between the two sides it's big I mean in back in Singapore the two sides tried to
paper over this fundamental difference which is in case of North Korea they
don't exactly want you know economic sanctions being lifted for full dinner
conversation I mean know what those gray doesn't want to engage in completing a
conversation whereas the United States seems to think that North Korea's
nuclear capability can be a quorum call poor off with karmic assistance and
funding so that fundamental difference actually ability safer game in Hanoi and
I think of the other side was able to move away from the original position
because it actually affects their strategy and policies to a great extent
from North Korea cannot abandon the commitments they can you know people are
partially so which nuclear capability and nuclear infrastructure that was
indicated by the statements given by not just by Kim jong-un by but also by the
Foreign Minister yeonho and the Vice Minister chessani in his time this ad
hoc press conference that I gave in the VI was normally in our own run for
president Trump I think are present from really needs to get something concrete
after half just having had a symbolic agreement in Singapore this time he had
also under pressure to go back home with some material advance in the
communitisation so I think that the reason why this to size couldn't really
agree on off on anything and that if for a part
so I think at this moment we are going back to the squares back to the drawing
board I would say they had to fundamentally redesign their approach
towards the negotiations I think this this top-down approach that person Trump
seems to prefer because you can seek a stamp it's all his own personal touch in
the entire process he's backfired on him had this been
managed by the working level and they resolved all these a major differences
beforehand then you he wouldn't have suffered this major diplomatic for power
and losing American credibility in the process so I think from now on the
United States should engage this process the more traditional sense using the
working-level staffers such as no special positive Steve Eden the more
authority and then have a more concrete resource before going to a summit well
there are some people who say that the working-level North Korean officials say
they can't agree to anything without Kim Jong Un's say-so
anyway so perhaps it's at some point you do have to reach out to the the man in
charge but we'll see how it it ends up panning out now president Trump said he
had to walk away as both sides failed to agree on lifting sanctions the u.s. very
firm on not doing so little real concrete commitment on denuclearization
a number of people have praised him for doing that showing the North clearly
that he's not some doormat that can be walked over even some of his critics
have said that was probably the right call in your view was it in Washington's
best interest to pull the plug on this summit early well that's the least they
could do at the moment I mean North Korea actually called for a
really high price for an existing and well-known even like a less useful first
nuclear facility that they have they tried to polarizing and okay and by
saying that this area is a very complete facility or something but at the end of
the day it just represents a small portion of North Korea's overall
gigantic presumably nuclear infrastructure so I think pressing
strong we need to Hanoi with the expectation that he'll have a deal no
matter how small but then I think I know became a very strong and I would even
say rigid negotiating position but then at the same time you might say that
prompt presence response to such a rigid negotiation position from North Korea
was right well in my opinion we should qualify that with the information that
those United States knew all along that I was not scoring position
even before the Hanalei summit for actually for eight months
North Korea kept the expectation of giving up in the correct facility at
Yongbyon I was very clear from the beginning
I think United States had UNMISS calculated that North Korea's attachment
with this idea of a young girl be the last and most ethical give out because
they are thinking that you know North Korea was just using this a narrative
that or argument somehow like a opti aunty but it's not
to be wrong North Korea is very rigid about this a very strict about the fact
that he doesn't want to give up other key facilities here and I think that's
going to set the tone for the second stage of negotiation with the United
States whether if that really takes place today as we just reported earlier
in this newscast both Washington and Pyongyang have come out of this summit
saying different things were said who between the two delegations and namely
the leaders themselves Trump saying that Kim wanted all the sanctions lifted and
then North Korea's foreign minister coming out late last night at the
so-called press conference saying that they only wanted partial sanctions
relief I believe it was five out of eleven something like that according to
him of sanctions relief that would help the ordinary North Korean people which
side to Ewing inclined to believe when it comes to these contrasting stories
actually they don't I mean they're both right the reason is because in the in
the in the sense of a spirit of the sanctions President Trump is absolutely
right you know the the bulk of the sanctions measures that are currently in
place are in a house being you know no squirrels asking for the lifting of the
perk of the sanctions to actually actually effect
the roschin economy those are the exactly sanctions that in a vice
minister north columbus mr. chase animation during the press conference
the United Nations sanctions resolution ranging from 20 to 70 all the way to
2397 these are the sanctions came into effect after the first nuclear test in
2016 and the difference between these sanctions and the previous ones that
North Korea said that how did into the overall sanctions regime they said these
are the sanctions that really have a bite under those konami so from
president for Trump's point of view you know what North Korea was asking wasn't
a partial sanctions lifting was in spirit was actually the bulk of the
sanction that really had an impact on the North Korean economy so in that
sense technically North Korea was asking for the partial sanctions lifting just
past by counting the number of a United Nations sanctions resolution but in
spirit the president was correct - right yes and South Korea's reaction to what
happened in Hanoi is one of disappointment perhaps they got sucked
into the expectation many were people were feeling about what might happen in
in Hanoi this Lee used president moon jaein in a bit of a tricky position now
he has won a lot of praise around the world for being the mediator between the
United States and North Korea you said that before that North Korea and the
United States might have to go back to the drawing board in their negotiations
do you think the same thing about the South Korean leader moon jae-in is he
gonna have to rethink his strategy now well he does he has to modify strategy
to grab it but I don't think I'd want to even affect his role as a mediator
between North Korea and the United States actually to the contrary his
importance actually went up well with the announcement that forcing that a
president Trump did when the air force want to call from Hanoi was to call
press the moon and ask tell him that to tell him that he also still interested
in continuing the dialogue with North Korea and as from fan aquatic or
mediation from president moon so in that sense person once wrote actually went up
but on the other hand for the rest of his strategy of engaging North Korea
currently its bottleneck because there's been no progress in the democratization
front but that's going to be the case for the foreseeable future so present
moon is actually burdened with more responsibilities without being able to
see concreted stars coming from his efforts we always deliver and finally
before we have to let you go North Korea's traditional ally China has
come out and said to the United States and North Korea now is the time to meet
in the middle where do you think that middle ground lies is it achievable and
what concessions would be considered fair to both sides china likes the
middle way all the time it's a nature of their country - name of the country -
but then I think how it's interesting that China actually didn't really assign
blame on the United States for the fallout of the talks now I mean
breakdown of the talks that shows that the Chinese also has a little bit of
displeasure at North Korea for being so regional when it comes to negotiating
with the United States so I think I'm behind is actually asking North Korea to
be more flexible to give up much of its nuclear capability I think that should
message that hah that's a message that is going to go to Pyongyang now okay and
China and the US have their own big negotiations coming up in regards to
trade as well perhaps Beijing doesn't want to rock the boat too much with the
Trump administration being too critical of them well it's a great pleasure to
have you in the studio first time we've had a chat like this and I hope one day
we can talk again soon that very great six