As we pointed out last night, the N. Koreans released a very amenable statement last night after Trump cancelled the summit yesterday.
Here’s the statement once again:
Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan issued a statement carried by the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). It came hours after Trump announced the surprise decision to withdraw from his summit with Kim Jong-un set for June 12.
“We express our willingness to sit down face-to-face with the U.S. and resolve issues anytime and in any format,” he said in the statement.
Kim said the U.S.’ decision to cancel the upcoming talks demonstrates how serious the animosity between the North and the U.S. remains, which he said underlines the urgent need of a summit between the leaders of the two countries.
He said that the North Korean leader has made all-out efforts to prepare for the summit with the U.S., saying his meeting with Trump will serve as a good start.
“Despite all of this, the U.S.’ unilateral decision to scrap the talks causes us to reconsider whether all of the efforts and the path we have taken is really the right one or not,” he said.
Kim said that the North remains open to talks with the U.S.
“Our commitment to doing our best for the sake of peace and stability for the world and the Korean Peninsula remains unchanged, and we are open-minded in giving time and opportunity to the U.S.,” he said.
This morning Trump responded to that by saying this on Twitter:
Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea. We will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 25, 2018
It looks like Trump’s tough stance may have worked. Time will tell, but canceling the summit does set the bar higher for the N. Koreans if they want to continue toward summit talks. No more games. If they truly want to meet to denuclearize, they need to get serious about negotiations.
Trump is expected to say more about this during his commencement address at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis.
UPDATE:
Trump just spoke on camera about N. Korea, telling reporters that his administration is talking to the N. Koreans again and the summit could still happen on the 12th as it was previously scheduled. He said “we’ll see what happens”:
Trump on North Korea: "We're going to see what happens. We're talking to them now." pic.twitter.com/Ax5Wb3C6FO
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) May 25, 2018