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Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger speaks at Senate Armed Services Forum hearing on national security strategy in Washington

Since North Korea announced its participation in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, various figures in the US have been talking about a diplomatic solution to the North Korean nuclear issue. Most notable are the comments by former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger about restarting the Six Party Talks. On Jan. 25, Kissinger said that the best way to reach an agreement on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula was by reviving the original Six Party Talks.

That’s considerably different from the hardline policy toward North Korea that he delineated last year, when he said that the US and China should have an agreement about how to deal with the collapse of the North Korean regime. Coming from a figure who has influence over the foreign policy of the Trump administration, such remarks make one feel once again that the mood in the US is shifting away from the fixation on pressure and toward opening the door to dialogue.

The Six Party Talks were launched in 2003 with the aim of finding a solution to the North Korean nuclear issue. They achieved considerable results through 2007, but they were suspended amid conflict between North Korea and the US and have not been reopened since then. But given how the conflict between the US and North Korea has become intense, turning into a veritable tinderbox, resuming the Six Party Talks between South and North Korea and their four powerful neighbors could serve as a safety mechanism and promote dialogue between North Korea and the US.

Even if the Six Party Talks are not reopened immediately, merely creating a venue for dialogue between the US and North Korea by discussing the idea of reopening the talks would be of no small significance. In connection with this, Robert Gallucci (the former US State Department envoy for the North Korean nuclear program and the chief US negotiator behind the US and North Korea’s Agreed Framework in 1994) recently offered some thought-provoking advice. Gallucci said that this was not a bad time for the US to engage with North Korea and that even dialogue for dialogue’s sake would be acceptable if it helped ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

We hope that officials in the Trump administration will lend their ear to such proposals by veteran diplomats who personally dealt with East Asian affairs and the North Korean nuclear issue. The South Korean government must also devote even more energy to serving as a facilitator for US-North Korea dialogue, so that these efforts can bear fruit.

The central question is the extent to which the US and North Korea can understand each other and make concessions. In that sense, it’s unfortunate that the US State Department categorically stated it would resume military exercises with South Korea immediately after the closing ceremony of the Olympics. We’re concerned that the push for peace that has materialized after so long will have to start from scratch.

Downsizing or further delaying the exercises would be a better way to gain trust with North Korea. Pyongyang’s decision to hold a large-scale military parade the day before the opening ceremony of the Olympics is not wise, either. What is needed right now is for North Korea and the US to both take a step back and move toward genuine dialogue.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]