For the first time in two years, North Korea today said it would open its hotline to South Korea to start discussions for sending its delegation to next month’s Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. It has been reported that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gave this order today to open the line to begin the discussions. This is being seen as a major diplomatic breakthrough and may pave way for future talks.
The North Korean decision to hold talks with its neighbour also came just a few hours after US President Donald Trump once again posted threatening tweets against Pyongyang. According to AFP, Kim has also welcomed Seoul’s support for his overtures. In his New Year address, Kim had warned the US that he has a “nuclear button” on his table but also extended an olive branch to the South, saying his country might take part in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in February. South Korea’s unification minister Cho Myoung-Gyon had reacted to Kim’s statement on Tuesday, offering to hold high-level talks on January 9 to discuss the North’s participation in the Olympics as well as other matters of mutual interest.
“By upholding a decision by the leadership, we will make close contact with South Korea in a sincere and faithful manner,” Yonhap news agency quoted Ri Son-gwon, head of North Korea’s agency handling inter-Korean affairs, as saying.
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018
Meanwhile, Trump has reacted to Kim’s “nuclear button” threat in his own style, saying he has a bigger “button” that works also.
“North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!,” Trump tweeted.
Sanctions and “other” pressures are beginning to have a big impact on North Korea. Soldiers are dangerously fleeing to South Korea. Rocket man now wants to talk to South Korea for first time. Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not – we will see!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018
In another tweet earlier, Trump had said, “Sanctions and “other” pressures are beginning to have a big impact on North Korea. Soldiers are dangerously fleeing to South Korea. Rocket man now wants to talk to South Korea for first time. Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not – we will see!”
Meanwhile, the White House had asked countries to further pressure on North Korea, calling the latter “a global threat.” “The focus here is to apply maximum pressure on North Korea and the US wants other countries to join it in this,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference on Tuesday. “This is a global threat, which is why we’re calling on everybody to step up and do more and we’re going to continue working with a lot of different leaders and other countries to help do that,” she said.