Korea Thread: Liberal Moon Jae In Elected

[Razgovory]

I think it'll be worse than that.  Trump loves every autocrat he has ever met.  He'll be ceding North Korea the whole peninsula after the first military parade/execution by AA gun he gets to attend.

It is likely that Trump will give further concessions, but at the moment he has already given Kim a major status boost.

I think a very likely outcome is for Trump meet with Kim and "let" NK keep it's nukes so long as they don't build anymore.  That's fine.  I'm cool with that.  I don't care if Trump tells the world it's the biggest diplomatic victory since Munich.

The problem I see is that he North Koreans are old, old school communists which can make them a bit abrupt.  Trump responds well to flattery.  Stalinists like North Korea have a bad habit punctuating statements with threats.  That probably won't play well.

[Valmy]

I'm kind of getting whiplash from how fast "zomg Trump's taking us to war" went to "zomg Trump's giving away the farm by talking to Little Rocket Man".

Really? That is basically every week in this Presidency.

[Legbiter]

Other way around. North Korea has always been willing to talk directly to the US as equals - the US has refused until the North acts reasonably. Trump is throwing that away.

Inside the North this will play as "our nukes have forced the US to treat with us as equals," everywhere else it'll be seen as throwing away leverage for nothing.

This is a gift to Kim.

I think it'll be worse than that.  Trump loves every autocrat he has ever met.  He'll be ceding North Korea the whole peninsula after the first military parade/execution by AA gun he gets to attend.

Well just a few posts ago we were urging Tim to leave South Korea because Trump was going to start a nuclear war to Trump the Surrender Monkey without missing a beat. So that's progress.

We'll see how it goes. Maybe Dennis Rodman will finally get a well-deserved Nobel Peace Prize. 

[Jacob]

Well just a few posts ago we were urging Tim to leave South Korea because Trump was going to start a nuclear war to Trump the Surrender Monkey without missing a beat. So that's progress.

We'll see how it goes. Maybe Dennis Rodman will finally get a well-deserved Nobel Peace Prize. 

Trump is prone to to drastic, irrational decisions and escalating conflict on a moment's notice.

It has been long-standing US policy - and policy argument - for the US not to talk to North Korea at that level without getting some concessions. Trump is breaking with that.

North Korea will trump (ahem) this talk as a victory.

None of those statements are contradictory in any shape or form.

That said, you're right we'll see how it goes. My expectation is that Trump will sell out American strategic interests and intelligence assets to generate private gain for his coterie and to stroke his ego, but only time will tell.

[crazy canuck]

Two leaders who are used to having their egos stroked, what could possibly go wrong?

[Legbiter]

Lindsay Graham with a little pre-summit diplomacy.

Sen. Lindsey Graham said Thursday that he hoped for peace on the Korean peninsula, but warned North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that "it will be the end" of him and his regime if he tries to take advantage of President Trump.

The GOP senator said Trump's diplomatic showdown with Kim presented the "best hope in decades" to peacefully resolve the threat of nuclear conflict — but Graham added that he is "not naive."

"I understand that if the past is an indication of the future, North Korea will be all talk and no action," the South Carolina senator said in a statement.

"However, I do believe that North Korea now believes President Trump will use military force if he has to."

Then Graham added a "word of warning" for the leader of the nuclear-armed hermit kingdom.

"The worst possible thing you can do is meet with President Trump in person and try to play him," the senator said.

"If you do that, it will be the end of you — and your regime.

https://nypost.com/2018/03/08/lindsey-graham-warns-kim-jong-un-if-you-play-trump-well-end-you/?utm_source=twitter_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons

[Jacob]

I concede that it is possible for Trump's approach to work with Kim. Stranger things have happened.

[Barrister]

I concede that it is possible for Trump's approach to work with Kim. Stranger things have happened.

Trump does do strange things pretty well...

[Valmy]

I concede that it is possible for Trump's approach to work with Kim. Stranger things have happened.

Maybe we had to elect somebody on the Kim dynasty's level.

[grumbler]

America has never tried the "surrender" approach to NK before, so Trump should get credit for thinking outside the box.

It's a bit worrisome to think of all the concessions Trump is likely to make to try to get Kim's approval, but that's less scary than all the things trump could try in an effort to get Kim to negotiate with him, so this seems like the lesser of two weevils.

[Jacob]

America has never tried the "surrender" approach to NK before, so Trump should get credit for thinking outside the box.

It's a bit worrisome to think of all the concessions Trump is likely to make to try to get Kim's approval, but that's less scary than all the things trump could try in an effort to get Kim to negotiate with him, so this seems like the lesser of two weevils.

Yeah, if Trump gives a bunch of concessions to Kim for short term optics that's merely embarrassing for Trump and useful for the North Koreans. From my perspective it is still preferable to the kind of mistakes Trump could make trying to look tough and potentially triggering armed conflict.

[Razgovory]

What kind of concessions can Trump give to North Korea?

[Admiral Yi]

What kind of concessions can Trump give to North Korea?

The kind of stuff Clinton gave.

[Eddie Teach]

Popcorn, Coke, Crackerjacks?

[Razgovory]

What kind of concessions can Trump give to North Korea?

The kind of stuff Clinton gave.

I'm not worried about food aid.