# North Korea suspending missile testing and closing nuclear site; Trump the statesman? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 20, 2018, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829 "2018-04-20T23:09:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 28
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/541 "2018-06-12T19:59:16Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > …It seems like **Velocity** is just suggesting that Japan would be acting consistent with the Trump Doctrine of “everyone for themselves, fuck everyone else” if they rebuilt their military. > > Of course, people may disagree with the Trump Doctrine of everyone should just be self-absorbed assholes and just give everyone else the finger as a matter of policy. I have a conservative Japanese uncle who does adhere to this view. He was rooting for Trump because Trump said he’d stop spending so much money defending other countries. To Japanese conservatives, that’s a good thing, because that would force Japan to build up a proper military of its own. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/542 "2018-06-12T20:30:02Z")
[Joe Biden calls out Trump on NK](https://apnews.com/88031aa89d3b47d6bfd1c3d8ef96be27/The-Latest:-Biden-troubled-by-Trump-Kim-summit-results): > [@](#): > > Biden says in a statement released Tuesday that Trump has given North Korea multiple “wins up front without getting anything in return.” He says those include an easing of pressure on Pyongyang, the suspension of U.S.-South Korean military exercises and the summit itself, which gave Kim legitimacy. > > Biden says that in return, Trump got only “vague promises” to begin negotiations on North Korea’s nuclear program, reducing U.S. leverage. > > Biden is accusing Trump of taking “an inexcusable and irresponsible approach” to the summit by not fully preparing for it, and he is urging the administration to focus on denuclearizing the Korean peninsula. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/543 "2018-06-12T20:37:08Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > I have a conservative Japanese uncle who does adhere to this view. He was rooting for Trump because Trump said he’d stop spending so much money defending other countries. To Japanese conservatives, that’s a good thing, because that would force Japan to build up a proper military of its own. That’s something I can wrap my head around. I inferred something different from **Velocity’s** statement. > [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > [Joe Biden calls out Trump on NK](https://apnews.com/88031aa89d3b47d6bfd1c3d8ef96be27/The-Latest:-Biden-troubled-by-Trump-Kim-summit-results): I’m not getting the whole “Legitimacy” thing. Kim is an evil fuck-stick, but he _is_ a legitimate leader. With nukes I might add. Treating him as if he weren’t seems unproductive to me. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/544 "2018-06-12T21:16:43Z")
> [@jasg](#): > > Another reason for the intelligence community to love Trump. > > From full [transcript](https://www.vox.com/world/2018/6/12/17452624/trump-kim-summit-transcript-press-conference-full-text) of press conference. To pull a quote where jet-lag must have caused a temporary bout of honesty: \*Question\>\> “You said the last was an add-on and not in the agreement. He gave you his word. If he doesn’t follow through on these things, what are you prepared to do in response and will you lose faith in the process?” \* _TRUMP\>\> "No. I think he will do it. I really believe it. It was really the engine testing site in addition to all of the other things that they agreed to do. They have a powerful engine testing site. Again, we’re able to see because of the heat it emits. I’m able to — I’m very happy with those two points. The two points you mentioned. You may be referring to the thing not in. The engine testing site. I think he will do these things. **I may be wrong. I may stand before you in six months and say, hey, I was wrong. I don’t know I’ll ever admit that. I’ll find some excuse."** _ ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/545 "2018-06-12T22:25:58Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > You don’t really mean this do you? I do mean it, 100%. Japan needs to be a totally normalized military nation like everyone else. And if Obama had met with Kim and made the concessions Trump did last night, conservatives would be howling for his head. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/546 "2018-06-12T23:16:04Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > And if Obama had met with Kim and made the concessions Trump did last night, conservatives would be howling for his head. They were howling for his head at the mere mention of Obama being open to talking to North Korea, but when Trump said that’s what he was going to do suddenly they were all cheering him on. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/547 "2018-06-12T23:24:59Z")
some people are very ticked off the US flag was next to the NK flag on the stage. I thought that was standard display for these kinds of meetings? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/548 "2018-06-12T23:28:07Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > They were howling for his head at the mere mention of Obama being open to talking to North Korea, but when Trump said that’s what he was going to do suddenly they were all cheering him on. [Video evidence compilation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjLA1v_Pgz0/new). ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/549 "2018-06-12T23:32:31Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Japan and South Korea need to seriously rethink the whole US Alliance now. Hope Japan ditches Article 9 and goes full military. On the one hand, Trumpian diplomacy with Kim seems to be sending the message that he does not give two fucks about what happens to South Korea and Japan. On the other hand, if he wants to be the big tough guy American who stands up to a rising China, he has no choice but to give two fucks – and probably a lot more than that. All along, this is precisely why China has tolerated North Korea. Just as Russia is trying to break the American-led hegemony in Western Europe, China has long dreamt of displacing the United States. If the US is seen as losing its value as a bodyguard, then that’s exactly what happens. Japan and South Korea are left to ask: why are you here? ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/550 "2018-06-13T00:23:04Z")
Isn’t it naive to think that Kim would even want prosperity for his people? The minute they get the internet, and see how the rest of the world lives, is when his power is at risk. He would never want that unless his real motive is to break apart his whole system and allow a revolution. Not bloody likely. So what are he really negotiating for? Basically send me money so that I can solidify my power, and I won’t build more nukes (but I really will). My other thought is that he may actually give Trump some short term wins to help get Trump moving and confident. And once Trump starts telling everyone how great he is for finally establishing peace and almost-disarming NK, Kim will gouge him for $billions. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/551 "2018-06-13T00:48:27Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > Yeah, North Korea’s not gonna buy that shit after he pulled out of the JCPOA. I agree the chances are remote, but they might, because they’ve already demonstrated nuclear capabilities and long-range missile capabilities. I don’t have a crystal ball, but what I’ve suspected all along is that Kim would seriously consider freezing his program – in exchange for some immediate concessions on sanctions. He doesn’t agree to give up what he already has, but he agrees to stop provocative acts like detonating nukes underground and firing missiles over Japan – in exchange for an end to sanctions. But if Trump asserts that sanctions end first, that’s a non-starter, and Kim goes back to firing his missiles, and he amps up the crazy act. And make no mistake: the escalation would continue until the US agrees to end sanctions, or unless the US initiates a preemptive strike and ends up in one of the nastiest wars in the last 80 years. Those are the choices if things escalate. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/552 "2018-06-13T01:33:10Z")
“He loves his people.” He starves them and puts them in prison camps. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/553 "2018-06-13T02:14:02Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > “He loves his people.” > He starves them and puts them in prison camps. Well, not _those_ people. The other ones. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/554 "2018-06-13T02:20:51Z")
North Korea’s state run News channel just announced that Donald agreed to lift NK sanctions. It’s a five-sentance article from Reuters. I’ll just post it. [https://www.reuters.com/article/northkorea-usa-sanctions/n-korea-state-media-says-trump-agreed-to-lift-sanctions-against-north-idUSS6N1PJ02M?utm\_source=reddit.com](https://www.reuters.com/article/northkorea-usa-sanctions/n-korea-state-media-says-trump-agreed-to-lift-sanctions-against-north-idUSS6N1PJ02M?utm_source=reddit.com) > [@Reuters](#): > > SEOUL, June 13 (Reuters) - North Korean state media said on Wednesday U.S. President Donald Trump had agreed to lift sanctions against the North in addition to providing security guarantees in the summit with the North’s leader, Kim Jong Un, the previous day. > > Trump was cited by North Korea’s official KCNA news agency as saying he made the promise after pledging to end joint military exercises with South Korea. > > There was no immediate comment about sanctions from the U.S. side. (Reporting by Christine Kim Editing by Paul Tait) Be sure to scroll down at that link to the previous newsbrief, titled, “Trump says no war games while North Korea negotiates in good faith: Fox interview”. I hope Mike Pompeo hates his life right now. ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/555 "2018-06-13T05:02:28Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > North Korea’s state run News channel just announced that Donald agreed to lift NK sanctions. > > It’s a five-sentance article from Reuters. I’ll just post it. > > [https://www.reuters.com/article/northkorea-usa-sanctions/n-korea-state-media-says-trump-agreed-to-lift-sanctions-against-north-idUSS6N1PJ02M?utm\_source=reddit.com](https://www.reuters.com/article/northkorea-usa-sanctions/n-korea-state-media-says-trump-agreed-to-lift-sanctions-against-north-idUSS6N1PJ02M?utm_source=reddit.com) > > Be sure to scroll down at that link to the previous newsbrief, titled, “Trump says no war games while North Korea negotiates in good faith: Fox interview”. > > I hope Mike Pompeo hates his life right now. I’m wondering how this is being presented to North Koreans. They have all been raised from birth to hate the US with a murderous passion. They’ve been told that they have to be poor and hungry because Dear Leader must have weapons to protect them from the most evil country on earth. Kim can’t just change course and announce that we are all friends now. He has to play it that he is calling the shots and the US is capitulating to him or he will lose the power that he needs to make his people accept that their lives suck. I don’t think Trump will be too happy to see it being presented that way but Kim really has no other choice if he wants to retain control. It’s not like he can suddenly make a brainwashed, uneducated populace into productive members of society who understand how foreign policy works. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/556 "2018-06-13T05:29:18Z")
> [@aurora\_maire](#): > > I’m wondering how this is being presented to North Koreans. [The Associated Press is here to help](https://apnews.com/337b24a97b5449948242213f896f57c8/North-Korea-lauds,-and-basks-in,-Kim's-summit-performance): > [@](#): > > “President Trump appreciated that an atmosphere of peace and stability was created on the Korean Peninsula and in the region, although distressed with the extreme danger of armed clash only a few months ago, thanks to the proactive peace-loving measures taken by the respected Supreme Leader from the outset of this year,” said a summary of the leaders’ summit by the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency. > [@](#): > > Kim has framed the switch as a natural next step now that he has what he stresses is a credible and viable nuclear arsenal capable of keeping the U.S. at bay. The framing that he went into the summit as an equal and from a position of strength is crucial within North Korea, after enduring years of tough sanctions while it pursued its nuclear ambitions. > > Kim’s vows to denuclearize were reported by state media Wednesday within that context — that Pyongyang would respond to easing of what it sees as the U.S. hostile policy against it with commensurate but gradual moves toward “the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.” > > “Kim Jong Un and Trump had the shared recognition to the effect that it is important to abide by the principle of step-by-step and simultaneous action in achieving peace, stability and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” KCNA reported. > [@](#): > > In the meantime, however, the North appears to be basking in it leader’s new found status as the most popular kid on the block. > > “Singapore, the country of the epoch-making meeting much awaited by the whole world, was awash with thousands of domestic and foreign journalists and a large crowd of masses to see this day’s moment which will remain long in history,” KCNA noted. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/557 "2018-06-13T11:46:07Z")
aurora maire wrote: “He has to play it that he is calling the shots and the US is capitulating to him…” No need to “play” anything there — the facts speak for themselves. “It’s not like he can suddenly make a brainwashed, uneducated populace into productive members of society who understand how foreign policy works.” It’s not Kim’s job to educate Americans. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/558 "2018-06-13T12:23:20Z")
Trump says there is [nothing to worry about from North Korea](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/13/trump-says-north-korea-no-longer-a-nuclear-threat.html): > [@](#): > > “Everybody can now feel much safer than the day I took office. There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea. Meeting with Kim Jong Un was an interesting and very positive experience. North Korea has great potential for the future!” Trump wrote on Twitter. > > North Korea also was no longer the United States’ “biggest and most dangerous problem,” he added. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/559 "2018-06-13T13:07:45Z")
“I hold in my hand a piece of paper …” “Peace for our time” We’ll see. Any details about timelines, processes, inspectors etc. You know the usual things that every other agreement like this comes with. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/560 "2018-06-13T13:17:50Z")
Here’s a pretty good take from [Slate](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/06/trumps-deal-with-kim-jong-un-is-a-con-job-and-youre-the-mark.html): “Trump isn’t trying to win over North Korea’s leader. He’s using him to win over you.” > [@](#): > > Three times during his press conference, Trump was asked about North Korea’s failure to honor previous agreements in which it made similar pledges. Each time the question was asked, Trump blamed the collapse of these agreements on previous American presidents. As evidence, Trump claimed that during the summit, Kim had told him that North Korea lacked “confidence” in Trump’s predecessors. In a post-summit interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, Trump said Kim had explained that “he was let down by the United States.” Far from challenging this statement, Trump used it to bolster his argument that no other American president could have worked with North Korea as Trump has. “I don’t think they honestly could have done it,” said Trump. > > This is the key to understanding the Trump-Kim relationship: Trump isn’t competing with Kim, or even trying to win him over. He’s using Kim to compete for status with previous American presidents. “A lot of people are saying it’s historic,” Trump told Stephanopoulos, referring to the summit. “We’ve done something that’s very unique. Nobody’s met with the [Kim] family. … No president has, certainly.” > > If Trump’s goal had been to maximize concessions from North Korea, he would have set high standards for the agreement, conveyed resolve, and kept his cards close to his vest. He has done the opposite. In the press conference, Trump blabbed about the limits of U.S. intelligence on North Korea: “probably less there than any other country.” He explained how we had detected Kim’s missile engine testing site: “We’re able to see because of the heat that it emits.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=27) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=29)