Concerns Trump could fall into trap in meeting Kim Jong-un

US President Donald Trump is expected to have an important meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in May. This meeting, if it takes place, will be an unprecedented event because it marks the first time a sitting US president has directly negotiated with a North Korean leader, according toBBC.

Experts say this is a strong change in diplomacy, set in the context of the relationship between the US and North Korea that had previously fallen into tension, seemingly leading to a war, due to aggressive statements and escalating actions from both sides.

But things have changed. On March 28, the US President tweeted that he was “looking forward to meeting” with North Korea. However, preparations are still in disarray.

The exact date and location of the meeting have not been set. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the administration is working on plans but added that "we have not set a specific date or time."

A senior US administration official revealed that "there are very high expectations in the Oval Office" about the summit with North Korea and that Mr. Trump certainly wants the North Koreans to give up their ambitions to build nuclear weapons.

But so far, President Trump’s administration seems not really ready. John Bolton, the new national security adviser chosen by the White House owner, will not officially take up the job until April 9. Mike Pompeo, the person Trump has appointed to lead the State Department to replace former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, has not yet been approved for the position.

Worry

Analysts are currently pessimistic about the Trump-Kim summit. Many openly express doubts about whether the US President is ready and whether he has a strategy to bring to the negotiating table.

Eric Altbach, an official who served on the US National Security Council under former President George W. Bush and has participated in many negotiations with North Korea, said he often had to prepare for months to years each time he set foot in a meeting with North Korean officials.

Altbach describes the preparation for such meetings as “extremely meticulous and careful.” What is to be said and what is to be done must be clearly agreed upon in advance.

However, President Trump has long shown himself to be unpredictable and not accustomed to following a script. It is also unclear how well he understands North Korea’s nuclear program. He sometimes confuses facts.Washington PostIn mid-March, President Trump reportedly said in a fundraising speech that he had made up information when discussing it with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

For these reasons, Altbach believes that the Trump-Kim summit may not go as expected. "I don't think we should expect too much from a detailed and comprehensive framework for denuclearization," he said.

Robert Kelly, a professor of North Korean studies at Pusan ​​National University in South Korea, even suggested canceling the meeting between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un because, according to him, it carries too many risks.

According to Kelly, the US president “doesn’t know much about North Korea” and his national security team is in disarray. Meanwhile, “the North Koreans are used to the job, they will come to the table with a detailed understanding and a willingness to negotiate to the root of the problem.”

“The first thing Kim Jong-un will do in the meeting room is give a 40-minute speech about American crimes during the Korean War,” Kelly said. “Will President Trump sit quietly and listen?” he asked.

Michael J. Green, professor at Georgetown University and deputy director of the Asia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said that the negotiation process with North Korea will contain many "pitfalls".

"North Korean leaders have decades of experience manipulating various agreements involving the UN Security Council and the US alliance in Asia. So do US diplomats, but they probably won't be able to play a central role at the meeting," Mr. Green commented.

Among the demands that Mr. Kim might make in exchange for North Korea agreeing to denuclearization, the removal of the U.S. military presence in South Korea and the cancellation of joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises would likely top the list. If he agrees, President Trump would walk straight into a “trap” set by North Korea.

"With only eight weeks left, President Donald Trump has a lot of work to do before he steps into the meeting room and I don't know if he's ever done anything like this before," Professor Kelly expressed concern.