It is a meeting that many thought would never happen. This morning Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un met face to face for the first time at the start of a landmark summit that has the potential to reshape the global order and usher in lasting peace on the Korean peninsula.
In a short address to the press, the US president anticipated a “terrific relationship” with Kim.
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Kim responded: “It was not easy to get here... There were obstacles but we overcame them to be here.”
What will the talks achieve?
CNN says the two leaders are “the unlikeliest of statesmen, but fate has thrown the US president and the North Korean tyrant an opportunity granted to few historic figures - together they can change the world”.
In a move befitting the personal style of both men, the two leaders first met alone for two hours, accompanied only by interpreters, before being joined by their aides. Much will depend on how they get on.
Will they get on?
Trump’s style of diplomacy is based primarily on instinct and this extends to his relationships with other world leaders.
The Times says the unusual format “will suit Mr Trump, who has spoken of his hope of using the meeting to establish good personal relations with Mr Kim”. However, the paper says “it will add to concerns that the US president, who has talked of trusting his instincts over preparation, will strike a spontaneous agreement without consulting his advisers”.
The BBC says “both leaders are notoriously unpredictable, volatile, nationalistic and prone to angry outbursts”, having traded numerous insults over the past year or so and in the run-up to today’s summit.
Some have claimed the US president’s erratic hardball tactics are perfectly suited to deal with the North Korean leader and call his bluff.
But in contrast to his dealings with his so-called allies, Trump has also shown a surprising flexibility and willingness to compromise with Kim ahead of the talks.
He has recently toned down his insistence on complete, verifiable, irreversible dismantlement (CVID) of North Korea’s nuclear programme. He has indicated he might accept a phasing out of the programme, in exchange for a review of sanctions.
But if the rewards of a successful summit make a meeting of two of the world’s most volatile leaders a risk worth taking, then the potential downsides offer a stark warning.
David Sanger and Choe Sang-Hun in The New York Times say that: “For all his boasts about his deal-making prowess, Trump has never been in a face-off with an adversary like this one, a ruthless dictator who has imprisoned huge numbers of his citizens in brutal gulags and summarily executed or assassinated challengers”.
“He has also never been in a negotiation with the risks of failure so stark” they add.
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