Se-Woong Koo: On U.S.-North Korea talks for Al Jazeera

Donald Trump accepted Kim Jong-un’s invitation for talks, and agreed to meet by May. Korea Exposé publisher Se-Woong Koo commented on the surprising turn of events. 

“People are amazed on the ground at just how fast everything has been moving forward,” he said on Al Jazeera. “The reaction to the development has been quite positive to say the least; Moon’s approval rating reflects that – it has jumped 7 points in the last week, which goes to show that people are really hoping for a breakthrough and the president has delivered it.”

“Of course the dominant interpretation we have seen is that these economic sanctions, the effectiveness of which has been questioned by many people, may in fact be taking its toll on the North Korean economy. But at the same time we must not forget, what North Korea has wanted for decades is to have direct conversation with the U.S. They always wanted to be taken seriously as a state, a legitimate state, and that meant having this face-to-face meeting with the leader of the U.S., and it seems that they’re going to get this very soon.”