This was a clever move by NK.
They want some heavy conditions to give up nukes and missiles.
NK’s goal is to get the US out of Korea and Kadena AFB in Japan. So NK runs to China, the referee that also owns the team, to get them on board with these “conditions” before they sit down with Mr. Trump.
Then if they don’t get their way during negotiations they keep running to China for support.
Very clever, locking the gorilla that is China in before negotiations.
Transcripts of the meeting with China are unlikely to be made available, so NK can characterize China’s stance any way they want during future negotiations.
China has either been hustled or they are offering NK some leverage.
Would be cleaver except POTUS has leverage on China. Kim has been told to take his medicine.
It's actually a good deal all around. The only reason we're there is protect the SK economy/political system. If re-integration occurs, then the threat is removed. The difficulty will be the managed, phased withdrawal, which could take a decade. But the payoff is unifying a relic of the cold war proxy wars.
You got it backwards. Kim was given his marching orders by China who don't want a trade war with the US. NK would and could not exist without Chinese support.
China wants a denuclearized Korean peninsula and a divided Korea. Why risk a substantial loss of the massive trade surplus it runs with the US to protect one of its vassals? A reduced military threat from NK will actually ease the huge US military buildup currently going on in the region. And the recently approved giant increase in US military spending along with the appointment of Pompeo as SecState and Bolton as head of the NSC send a message as well.
Kim going to China is a sign of weakness, not strength. Business is business.
The US under Trump will not accept any deal that is not verifiable.