It seems like the Trump administration is going to keep playing along with the so called peace process by smiling for photo ops and saying the right things. However, so far it appears they will not drop sanctions until North Korea does something to show they are serious about denuclearization. At some point this will come to a crisis and it seems the Trump administration wants the Kim regime to be the ones blamed for starting the crisis:
South Korean President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence during a meeting in Singapore on Nov. 15, 2018. (Yonhap)
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence asked South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Thursday to communicate and talk more closely with North Korea, Moon’s spokesman said.
The remark, made during a meeting with Moon in Singapore on the sidelines of regional summits, is seen as a call for Moon to play greater roles so that upcoming talks between the U.S. and the North, including a second summit, will be able make progress.
Pence was quoted as telling reporters after the meeting with Moon at the Suntec convention center that U.S. President Donald Trump plans to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un next year and that the two sides are discussing details.
“My understanding is that (Pence) made a request to Moon separately even as talks are under way between the North and the U.S.,” the South’s presidential spokesman, Kim Eui-kyeom, told reporters.
Moon agreed to play active roles while closely communicating with both sides, Kim said.
Kim said that there was no mention of sanctions during the meeting. [Yonhap]
