N Korean leader invites S Korea's Moon to the North

Who cares about USA's stance! Korea is Korea, and it's up to the Korean-family to resolve the issues surrounding their family. Russia, China, Japan and USA should hold their tongue and let Korea be Korea for Christ sake!

Mike Pence not standing in respect during the "Unified-Korea" march is just utterly Machiavellian, and proves that a unified Korea is not in the interests of the USA-government. You say one thing, but do the other, USA! You should be shameful.

Without the financial assistance, the access to international markets, the technology & cultural transfers and resources of the US & her faithful allies - I wonder if South Korea will be able to absorb the North Korean economy with collapsing.

Haha, events have moved as I ordered them. Telekinetics. Me - 2, Kim - 1, Moon - 0

Kim must be reading JT.

damn... no one will need the not-working Missles from USA anmore ?

Congrats Trump. You managed to bring together two of the most intransigent enemies of the past 70 years over the shared belief that you are one brain dead, dangerous dotard.....

Characters defined as a number is indeed a refutation.

On the one hand a military Dictatorship, a reckless rogue state that has failed on every count to abide by UN Security Council resolutions, sanctions. all undermined by the Governments of China and the Russian Federation.

Then the foolish South Korean President Moon Jae-in Olympian spectacle of vacuous appeasement. Ultimately substantially influencing , invigorating ties between Beijing, Moscow, Pyongyang.  

South Korean President Moon Jae-in unilateral action, propitiation by any other name is the very definition peace in our time political naivety.

Mike Pence not standing in respect during the "Unified-Korea" march is just utterly Machiavellian, and proves that a unified Korea is not in the interests of the USA-government. You say one thing, but do the other, USA! You should be shameful.

Pence is a cute hoor. He's playing to the audience back home, to show them he means business and isn't going to show respect to lesser countries.

And some of his audience may well lap it up, like thirsty barflies, but the rest of us are wise to this particular barsteward.

He's a nasty god bothering backward bigot and just one step away from the Presidency. Brrr!

@itsonlyrocknroll

Not sure I'd call the US & it's vassal state allies peace loving either. Have a good look at their track record and lies, murder, money wasting jobs for the boys at the expense of mainly the US taxpayer...ie. Iraq, Afganistan, Libya, Syria etc etc. Anything to further war and the money machine that goes with it.

Either everyone should have Nukes or no one.

Bravo to Moon i say !!

Kim's sister has probably been ordered to go to SK just to pick up some snacks for Kim that he can't get anymore. NK hasn't magically changed. There is always a reason behind any kind of peaceful overture made towards SK or the West. They're already desperate enough to try illegal ship to ship transfers of fuel so the sanctions are obviously biting. Keep the screws tightened and, as long as China keeps playing ball, NK will have virtually no fuel sources so no choice but to explode or implode.

Kim Yo Jong is a diplomat and is clearly good at her job. I hope the meeting goes ahead.

Hi ozziedesigner, the aim here is to prevent a devastating confrontation.

The official Pyongyang ideology is Juche, a Sino-Korean word used in the North and South, in essence translates as the independent status of a subject.

The very definition of a cult of personally. The justification of monolithic leadership, almost divine in nature.

Please, what part of this ideological intransigence, on a political level could unify with the democratic liberalism of the South??    

Politics Are Centre Stage at a South Korean Winter Olympics...

https://www.newyorker.com/news/sporting-scene/politics-are-center-stage-at-a-south-korean-olympics

Either everyone should have Nukes or no one.

So that means your in favour of Japan having them then? Under the prevailing circumstances, yeah I agree.

People seem to forget this whole nuclear issue is not going away regardless of the warm greetings.

The most likely option to me is that the North continues to go its own merry way and wrangles some humanitarian concessions out of South Korea and tries to re-establish some friendly ties. Hard to see much in the way of trade concessions other than humanitarian, but that might be enough for both Korea's at this point.

However, ultimately it solves nothing.

The U.S won't let this go. Japan absolutely won't let it go. And I doubt China will let it go either because they know that if somehow N.Korea keeps their nukes, the U.S and Japanese response will be directly against their interests over the long term. Under reunification they also lose because it will be a democratic Korea controlled via Seoul as the only sensible option. 40 million people in a developed country v 25 million in a very impoverished country.

I think we all know what direction Japan and the U.S will take over the medium to long term if it appears certain that N.Korea OR a unified Korea maintains nuclear weapons. Read between the lines and you can see Abe has made that abundantly clear.

re: Who cares about USA's stance! Korea is Korea, and it's up to the Korean-family to resolve the issues surrounding their family.

Tell that to the SK's gov who won't let the US get out of Korea as request after request has been made to include a drawdown but even recently the two faced Moon won't let that happen. Early during the campaign and presidency POTUS even again hinted at pulling the US troops out of Asia. Russia and China can have it. SK has used Japan and the US far too much with nothing back in return.

The reality politically, Matt Hartwell, is that Abe san LDP ruling Government will struggle to revise the pacifist constitution.

Even to most conservative members of my family, balk at any suggestion of changes to Article Nine. And the thought of Japan obtaining or procuring a nuclear deterrent arouses trepidation that can only be relieved with a warm sake.

Everything depends on what happens during the meeting, if it goes ahead

(But how many would trust that Kim won't blow it at the meeting)

The reality politically, Matt Hartwell, is that Abe san LDP ruling Government will struggle to revise the pacifist constitution.

Even to most conservative members of my family, balk at any suggestion of changes to Article Nine. And the thought of Japan obtaining or procuring a nuclear deterrent arouses trepidation that can only be relieved with a warm sake.

Then you will have to take the risk that the U.S will respond if Japan is attacked by Korea. If I was Japanese, I would extremely wary of U.S protection under such a scenario given the proximity of Korea to China. If it becomes a choice between letting down Japan or pissing off China, I would not be sure of the answer.

And you might say that a Korean attack is unlikely, but as you know there is still a lot of ill feeling between the countries. Only needs a Korean nationalist, perhaps one that plays up Japanese past aggression, to get elected and then who knows...

Hi Matt Hartwell, I'm not convinced that the US military presence in Japan after some half a century plus, is necessarily devoted or aligned as protectorate in nature, minus the element of control.

US forward strategy Japan is circumspect when confronted with the prospect of incineration within a twenty minute time window.

Given Presidents Trump’s somewhat erratic style of communication, and zero sum diplomacy, combined with a ferocious tactical and strategic strike capability, any fracture in the so called trilateral security cooperation, US, South Korea, Japan could tip the balance.

How should any Government interpret Pyongyang's invitation? As another entrapment to assist by time to further their ballistic missile and nuclear development programme?

Happy comments not withstanding, I need to see North Korea willing to discuss the elimination of the nuclear and missile programs first to say we've achieved anything. North Korea so far has pulled an enormous victory; made clear that they can strike US cities, and that they really "love" their Southern brethren. Just hate the Americans. I doubt our current leader and administration will be able to counter this combined strategic/diplomatic North Korean victory.

There is no win-win for all involved with this. Perhaps if Dear Leader takes a dirt nap, then we can start fresh. But he's gonna keep his nukes no matter what carrots are dangled in front of him or rewards granted. And he's not gonna accept equality with the South.

This is an epic diplomatic victory for North and South Korea! They have thoroughly put Japan and America in their place and made it all but certain that the North will get its thermo nukes and the capability to wipe out half of America and Japan. Well done to Moon as well for playing America like the warmongering fools they are!

The only option is to accept North Korea’s system of government and capability to eliminate any nation on Earth at any time. There is no chance America would start anything now

This Doesn't change a thing.

The South can get in bed with the North, but they will end up being fckd Royally.

The North still threatens the US with Nuclear annihilation, and that means the South is just going to end up as Collateral damage should that event happen, so what do they hope to achieve... ?

As Korea wants to smoke the peace pipe, the USA is beating on the war drums. Peace in Korea would ruin everything for the USA. It would mean losing their bases in South Korea. It would get rid of the build up of the US military. It would hurt profits for the US military industrial complex.

This is an epic diplomatic victory for North and South Korea!

This is a epic political victory for North Korea, unfortunately  Their nuclear and missile program has successfully intimidated and scared Moon into agreeing to talk with Kim.....on Kim's terms and on his territory.

Kim knows he now has the advantage, thanks to his nuclear and missile program.  With the balance now in North Korea's favour, North Korea can now dictate the terms of a peace treaty with South Korea:  First demanding the removal of U.S military forces from the peninsula, then demanding a peace treaty forcing South Korea to accept a unification of the two Koreas under the DPRK regime and recognition of the DPRK as the official government of the Unified Korea.

Are the South Korean people willing to accept living under DPRK regime?  DPRK's human rights abuse and brutality against their own people are well documented.  And no doubt they will execute any SK people who does not agree to assimilate and accept the DPRK policy.

Japan and U.S. should have a concern about a DPRK Unified Korea aligned with China and Russia.  China would have a powerful new ally to help dominate the entire East China Seas region and pose a threat to Taiwan, Okinawa and mainland Japan.

I agree with Strikebreaker555, it is up to the Korean population to fix things up, not the rest of the World!

I've always been for a unified Korea, but the Kim regime doesn't figure at all into that equation. If Korea unites and Kim is still in power, then it's not going to end well, which is what China's CCP wants. If Korea unites and Kim is imprisoned and judged by Korea and his regime dismantled then it will lead to a much more peaceful and prosperous Korea which is what the rest of the world and the US wants.

The only reason why China's CCP keeps supporting NK could be a variety of reasons. An "ally" of sorts, no real economic challenge to China's "power" over the region etc.