With Nuke-Button Boast And Offer To Seoul North Korea's Kim Exploits A Weak Link

Washington: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may not really have a nuclear button on his desk, but he has found a way to undermine the unity of his two principal foes: South Korea and the U.S.

Kim used his New Year's address to boast of his metaphorical nuclear button while also offering direct talks with Seoul. The offer was quickly accepted by South Korean President Moon Jae-in, underscoring differences between the U.S. and its long-time ally over confronting North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

While President Donald Trump has been wary of negotiations unless Kim first abandons his nuclear ambitions -- at one point telling Secretary of State Rex Tillerson not to waste his time with talks -- Moon won election on a platform of engagement. The same week Trump ridiculed Kim's arsenal, Moon's government suggested a Jan. 9 meeting in the border village of Panmunjom and accepted a call from North Korea over a hotline between the nations.

"Here you have the United States all but threatening war with North Korea and simultaneously you have South Korea leaning forward in an aggressive fashion to accommodate North participation and dialogue," said Evans Revere, a former U.S. diplomat in South Korea. "These things are happening simultaneously, and it is in direct contradiction to the fundamental thrust of U.S. policy."

Trump Touts 'Bigger' Nuclear Button in Retort to Kim Jong Un Kim's offer, which follows repeated requests for dialogue from South Korea, adds to tensions that have lingered between Trump and Moon since the U.S. president's inauguration almost a year ago. While the two Asian nations will ostensibly limit discussions to the prospect of North Korea taking part in the Winter Olympics in South Korea next month, both sides have raised the possibility of more open-ended talks, an idea the U.S. sought to discredit.

The U.S. is "very skeptical of Kim Jong Un's sincerity in sitting down and having talks," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Tuesday. That stance contradicted Moon's spokesman, Park Soo-hyun, who said the South is willing to have talks no matter the time, place or format.

The differing interpretations of Kim's comments highlight the gap that the North Korean leader managed to exploit. While the South Korean government latched on to the opportunity Kim's speech offered, U.S. officials had a different interpretation.

A National Security Council official, who asked not to be identified discussing White House policy, said that anyone reassured by Kim's New Year's message must have been drinking "too much champagne."