Second day of N. Korea-U.S. negotiations to prepare for second summit
- 5 years ago
U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun is in Pyeongyang to discuss the details of the second North Korea-U.S. summit.
He departed from Seoul on Wednesday for working-level negotiations with his North Korean counterpart.
We have our Park Hee-jun on the line for us at the foreign ministry.....
Hee-jun...what's the latest?
It's now day two of Biegun's visit to Pyeongyang.
He's believed to be sitting down with his new North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok-chol, who is the former ambassador to Spain,... to prepare for the upcoming summit.
It's unclear whether the negotiations will be wrapped up today,... or continue onto the third day.
Because there are a substantial number of issues to discuss.
And without a clear set of agreements,... it would be difficult to ensure the success of the second Kim-Trump summit.
The two sides are aiming to find a common ground between North Korea's demands and the United States' demands.
The North has offered to dismantle its plutonium and uranium enrichment facilities that provide materials for nuclear weapons.
That includes the permanent shutdown of its Yeongbyeon Nuclear Complex.
But that's only if the U.S. takes corresponding measures.
There's the possibility of setting up a joint liaison office, declaring an end to the Korean War and providing humanitarian assistance.
But Pyeongyang has been mostly requiring the removal of economic sanctions.
It would be difficult for Washington to remove them right away,... but Biegun did say at Stanford University last week, that the U.S. is preparing a special economic package for Pyeongyang.
They also would have to finalize the exact venue for the Kim-Trump summit.
President Trump has only announced that the second summit will be held in Vietnam from February 27th to 28th.
It's likely that they have yet to decide whether it will be held in the city of Hanoi or Da Nang.
And there is speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may meet Biegun before he departs.
It's unclear as of now, but I'll get you up to speed with that when we hear more.
Now it's safe to say a lot is at stake for the second summit... Is that why the upcoming summit is longer than the previous one?
You're right Aram. The second North Korea-U.S. summit,... is set to be held for two days.
Last year at the Singapore summit, Kim and Trump met for a total of less than five hours, and that includes their lunch and their stroll.
If they hold the meeting for two days,... the two leaders have more time to reach an agreement that satisfies both sides.
And this time we may even expect a banquet.
The schedule reflects the two sides' commitment to reach the kind of deal that the international community has been anticipating.
And considering the amount of criticism there's been over the lack of progress in nuclear talks up until now,.. there really needs to be some concrete results, so there's no doubt that North Korea and the U.S. will go all in with their efforts,... in the less than three w
He departed from Seoul on Wednesday for working-level negotiations with his North Korean counterpart.
We have our Park Hee-jun on the line for us at the foreign ministry.....
Hee-jun...what's the latest?
It's now day two of Biegun's visit to Pyeongyang.
He's believed to be sitting down with his new North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok-chol, who is the former ambassador to Spain,... to prepare for the upcoming summit.
It's unclear whether the negotiations will be wrapped up today,... or continue onto the third day.
Because there are a substantial number of issues to discuss.
And without a clear set of agreements,... it would be difficult to ensure the success of the second Kim-Trump summit.
The two sides are aiming to find a common ground between North Korea's demands and the United States' demands.
The North has offered to dismantle its plutonium and uranium enrichment facilities that provide materials for nuclear weapons.
That includes the permanent shutdown of its Yeongbyeon Nuclear Complex.
But that's only if the U.S. takes corresponding measures.
There's the possibility of setting up a joint liaison office, declaring an end to the Korean War and providing humanitarian assistance.
But Pyeongyang has been mostly requiring the removal of economic sanctions.
It would be difficult for Washington to remove them right away,... but Biegun did say at Stanford University last week, that the U.S. is preparing a special economic package for Pyeongyang.
They also would have to finalize the exact venue for the Kim-Trump summit.
President Trump has only announced that the second summit will be held in Vietnam from February 27th to 28th.
It's likely that they have yet to decide whether it will be held in the city of Hanoi or Da Nang.
And there is speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may meet Biegun before he departs.
It's unclear as of now, but I'll get you up to speed with that when we hear more.
Now it's safe to say a lot is at stake for the second summit... Is that why the upcoming summit is longer than the previous one?
You're right Aram. The second North Korea-U.S. summit,... is set to be held for two days.
Last year at the Singapore summit, Kim and Trump met for a total of less than five hours, and that includes their lunch and their stroll.
If they hold the meeting for two days,... the two leaders have more time to reach an agreement that satisfies both sides.
And this time we may even expect a banquet.
The schedule reflects the two sides' commitment to reach the kind of deal that the international community has been anticipating.
And considering the amount of criticism there's been over the lack of progress in nuclear talks up until now,.. there really needs to be some concrete results, so there's no doubt that North Korea and the U.S. will go all in with their efforts,... in the less than three w