The South Korean President Moon Jae-in, while on the election trail, had said that if required, he would go to North Korea to move the peace process forward. After he became president, he also said that there would not be any more war on the Korean Peninsula. But once in the president's chair, Moon realized that he was not an independent man and the real driving force of policy on the Korean peninsula was the United States. With Donald Trump hurling abuses on the North and threatening war, Moon became a hapless spectator. Now it is reported in the Quaint that Moon has gotten around the invitation extended to him by Kim Jong-un by stating that the North was ready for dialogue with the USA.
There is no doubt that President Moon was surprised at the invitation by the North Korean leader to visit Pyongyang. The invitation was handed over by the sister of Kim at the opening of the winter Olympics in the presidential palace at Seoul.
Kim Jong-un
Kim Jong has proven that he is an adept diplomat. He sent the invitation knowing that Moon could not accept it in defiance of the US, as South Korea is hostage to US policy in the region. He scored brownie points with the invitation and proved that Moon is not an independent agent. Moon has now said that North Korea is ready to for dialogue with the USA. The reason for Moon's statement has not been published, as Kim is silent on the issue.
To the credit of Donald Trump, it must be mentioned that despite all his rhetoric against North Korea, he had also said that he would be ready to meet Kim.
The Korean dictator is basking in the sun for making North Korea a nuclear power. There is no way the USA can get the North to roll back their nuclear program. Trump has been hoping that the North will launch a strike but Kim is too shrewd a man to fall into this trap.
Trump
Donald Trump would like nothing better than to have a surgical strike on the North, but warnings by General Mattis of unprecedented destruction and casualties in the South has stopped him.
Moon is skating on thin ice. His failure to respond positively to the invitation by Kim is a sign that he is hostage to American policy in the region. The Times of India has reported that Kim, by extending the invitation, has tried to drive a wedge between the South and the USA. This has not happened but many in Korea will be wondering how free Moon really is.
Last word
The US is wanting to tighten the screws on the North by enforcing a near-total blockade of the North, which Kim has called an "act of war." It looks highly unlikely that Kim will give up his nuclear development weapons program.
