Door already ajar: Trump may struggle to isolate North Korea again

JUNE 9, 2018 / 8:43 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Brenda Goh, Josh Smith

DANDONG, China/SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean officials have toured China to discuss economic development. Speculators are snapping up property along their common border. And South Korea is studying ways to boost engagement with its isolated neighbor to the north.

Across the region, there are signs that U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign of “maximum pressure” on Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons is weakening ahead of his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore on Tuesday.

Trump, along with leaders like South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in, have credited the pressure campaign with bringing Kim to the negotiating table through a combination of international sanctions, political isolation, and threats of military action. However, unless there is a major provocation or resumption of nuclear testing or missile launches by North Korea, strategists and academics say it is unlikely that maximum pressure will ever fully return.

“Trump’s campaign is over,” said Kim Hyun-wook, a professor at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. “The diplomatic openings with North Korea have already been taking a toll on the maximum pressure campaign.”

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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-usa-maximumpressure-insigh/door-already-ajar-trump-may-struggle-to-isolate-north-korea-again-idUSKCN1J600L