The prospect for dialogue between North Korea and the United States is turning bleak, with Joe Biden’s America playing by international rules on North Korea policy.
U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken reiterated U.S commitment to stripping North Korea of its nuclear program during his two-day visit to Seoul this week.
This reaffirms that the Biden administration will not soften or lift nuclear sanctions as demanded by the North as a precondition to resuming deadlocked dialogue.
The impoverished state reacted sensitively to the sanctions, as seen from its announcement, March 19, to sever diplomatic ties with Malaysia in protest of a Malaysian top court ruling to extradite a North Korean citizen to Washington over money laundering charges.
“Malaysia has been one of the few remaining friends with North Korea, and cutting of such friendship suggests how resolute the North is against anyone who aggravates the sanctions,” said Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University.
The North’s woeful human rights record as raised by Blinken also added to negative outlook for the future of dialogue.
The repressive state has found related discussions at the U.N. and other international stages unacceptable, as they ultimately target the country’s leader Kim Jong-un to be brought to international justice.
Blinken accused the North of committing “systematic and widespread abuse,” during his Seoul trip, saying “We must stand with people demanding their fundamental rights and freedoms and against those who repress them.”
“Human rights is a universal value that should be addressed regardless of circumstances, but it certainly stands in a way when it comes to issues of resuming dialogue with the North,” said Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University.
He said the joint military exercise with the South, which comes as the U.S. tries to restore alliances, is another stumbling block for nuclear negotiations. Despite being held in a smaller scale than the past, the combined drills this year lasted from March 8 to 18.
In a statement carried out by the Korean Central News Agency, March 18, North Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui said the U.S. reached out to the North the day before the combined drill from a “third country.”
She then said no dialogue with the U.S. can be possible unless Washington “rolls back its hostile policy.” She also said Pyongyang will disregard such attempts by the U.S. in the future.
On March 16, Kim Jong-un’s powerful sister Kim Yo-jong lambasted the South for conducting military exercises with the U.S. while warning Washington not to engage in hostile acts.
