---

During the first year of his presidency, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump held meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. However, these meetings failed to achieve satisfactory results for Washington. Negotiations between the two parties might resume with the new administration regarding North Korea’s nuclear status and U.S. forces in Japan and South Korea.

• With Diplomacy and Bandage: Trump Courts Kim and Attacks Biden

• The Koreas on the Brink: Kim Threatens to Push the Nuclear Button under This Condition

Last month, Trump told Fox News, “We would have faced a nuclear war that would have killed millions of people… Then, when I went there, I had a great rapport with Kim Jong-un.”

This year, North Korea signed a mutual defense treaty with Russia and took the unprecedented step of sending thousands of troops to support Moscow in the Ukraine war, according to officials in Washington, Seoul, and Kyiv. Russia has supported North Korea by providing oil and other imports and voted against renewing the mandate of a committee monitoring UN sanctions violations, Reuters reported.

According to the agency, diplomats in Seoul and other observers of North Korean affairs say Trump‘s comments suggest he may be looking to renew contact with Kim sooner rather than later.

• Western Weapons Flow to Ukraine… and Russia Responds via North Korea

• Title: North Korean Leader Declares Readiness for War… Who Will Face Off?

Ramon Pacheco Pardo from King’s College London says, “Trump feels that his communication with Kim was successful during his first presidency as he felt he had solved the North Korean nuclear issue. Additionally, Trump–Kim summits attracted considerable media attention, which he greatly enjoys,” Reuters reported.

A former official from Trump’s first administration noted that North Korea, Ukraine, China, Iran, and other hotspots were surprisingly interconnected during Trump’s first term.

The former official added that “President Trump is facing a different geopolitical landscape than in 2021,” suggesting that any substantial engagement with North Korea might need to wait.

• Who is Kim Ju-ae: The Possible Successor and Secret Princess of North Korea

• North Korea bans citizens from laughing, drinking and shopping for 11 days

A diplomatic source in Seoul explained that North Korea’s ties with Russia, combined with the unpredictability of the new Trump administration’s policies, present a geopolitical challenge that leaves officials and diplomats from Europe to Asia in confusion.

Doyon Kim from the Center for a New American Security stated that North Korea appears indifferent to who is in the White House, as Kim has made it clear that Pyongyang will continue its nuclear programs with support from China and Russia.

• The game of absence… where did the North Korean leader disappear?

• What would happen if the North Korean leader died?

Pardo believes that North Korea would at least want to sit down with the United States to see what Trump might offer, as good relations with Washington are the only way to lift some sanctions, and he notes that Trump might even recognize Pyongyang as a nuclear power.

Bruce Klingner, a former CIA analyst now with the Heritage Foundation, believes Kim might see a benefit in engaging with Trump.

• Report: North Korea is continuing to develop its nuclear weapons program

• “I’m Crazy”… Trump’s Foreign Policy Doctrine “Scares the World”

Klingner stated, “Kim might propose a peace agreement or treaty to Trump as a significant achievement worthy of a Nobel Peace Prize, though it would not actually reduce the threat facing the United States and its allies. Such an agreement could lay the groundwork for reducing the number of U.S. troops in South Korea and Japan.”