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| U.S. President Donald Trump |
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| North Korean leader Kim Jong-un |
Seoul needs to stay involved in the Washington-Pyongyang denuclearization dialogue to promote its interests in a string of inter-Korean issues. These include the possible resumption of tourism to the North's Mount Geumgang, which cannot be realized unless international bodies and the U.S., take steps to ease sanctions on the regime.
Following a Washington visit by North Korean envoy Kim Yong-chol last week, the U.S. and the North are going ahead with preparations for their much-anticipated second summit slated for late next month.
Starting Saturday (local time in Sweden), the U.S. and the North have begun four days of working-level talks to finalize the agenda to be discussed during the second meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
South Korea also dispatched a delegation, led by Lee Do-hoon, the special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, in a move to coordinate the two countries' apparent differences on the timeline and methods for denuclearization of the peninsula.
With Washington and Pyongyang failing to reach a specific consensus in denuclearization talks following their first summit in June, Seoul's role as a mediator is becoming more and more important.
Until the first half of last year, expectations were that the historic June 12 summit between Trump and Kim would facilitate an end to their countries' decades-long hostility and pave the way for the North's rapid denuclearization.
But the two countries have since come to a standstill in their nuclear disarmament dialogue, failing to make any meaningful progress toward their bilateral goal of building a "nuclear-free peninsula."
For this reason, there has been a growing sense of need for a second Trump-Kim summit as early as possible to seek a breakthrough.
Shin Beom-chul, senior director of research at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said Seoul should keep encouraging Washington and Pyongyang to sign "as big a deal" as possible during their upcoming summit.
"At the moment, Seoul has no choice but to continue persuading the U.S. and the North to move their dialogue forward in a smooth manner. This is because the major parties in the ongoing denuclearization talks are Washington and Pyongyang, and they remain poles apart," the expert said Monday.
"Under the circumstance, Seoul should take a cautious attitude in encouraging them to narrow their differences."
He also underlined the need for South Korea to continue engaging in the talks by helping the U.S. and the North maintain their momentum for reconciliation even after the second summit.
The working-level dialogue began after Kim Yong-chol, vice chairman of the North's ruling Workers' Party Central Committee, held high-level talks with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Shin went on to say the chances are Pompeo and Kim may have already reached a broad consensus over the possible agenda for the upcoming summit. For this reason, it is likely the working-level delegations will not reach a new and big agreement during their talks, he added.
There are several negotiating cards that Washington and Pyongyang can play during their second summit.
The U.S. may promise to suspend annual Seoul-Washington joint military exercises in exchange for the North's concrete steps toward denuclearization, such as the dismantling of its Yongbyon nuclear facility under a special inspection by outside experts, according to him.
"But it still remains to be seen what cards they will play, as neither side is willing to unveil more specific information before the summit," he said.
