Kim Jong-un Embraces Beijing Anew, Bringing Precious "Denuclearization" Gift

  Kim Jong-un Embraces Beijing Anew, Bringing Precious "Denuclearization" Gift

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

March 29, 2018

 Translation of an Excerpt

As the US-China trade war starts, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un suddenly made a lightning visit to Beijing; although he stayed for less than 24 hours, the news startled the world and shook US-China-North Korea tripartite power plates. Earlier, Kim Jong-un utilized the PyeongChang Olympics to achieve a reconciliation between the two Koreas and created the May surprise of “Trump-Kim” summit on the eve of the US-South Korea military exercises. This time, he used his appearance in Beijing to bring Mainland China back to the global spotlight, just as the outside world thought that China had lost its role in the North Korea nuclear crisis. The world sighs in awe at the delicate finesse that Kim Jong-un manipulates big power diplomacy.

Since he came to power in 2011, Kim Jong-un had not taken a step out of the gates of his country, nor had he, following past precedence, visited allies China and Russia. He chose to visit Beijing before the Trump-Kim summit, clearly with meticulous calculations. First, he wants to seek Mainland China’s assistance in order to ease its domestic economic pressure. Second, he wants to line up with Mainland China to increase North Korea’s political bargaining chips during the US-North Korea talks. For this reason, Kim Jong-un chose to extend his friendship to the PRC right before the Trump-Kim summit, hoping to use the two-handed strategy to bring back the PRC’s support, and also to maximize the benefits that he could seek at the bargaining table in the future.

Recently, the hawkish forces have lifted their heads in the Trump administration, endlessly turning the diplomatic pressure from the North Korea question to Mainland China. After Trump and Kim secured channels for direct dialogue, Mainland China’s role has gradually been marginalized in the question of the Korean Peninsula, allowing the United States to launch a trade war against Beijing without qualms. Kim Jong-un's visit to Beijing is tantamount to proving that the PRC has regained the right to serve the ball in the Korean Peninsula question, making it impossible for the United States to get whatever it wants in the question of trade.

What is noteworthy is that Kim Jong-un, when meeting with Xi Jinping, especially mentioned that he would follow the "bequeathed instructions" of his grandfather and father Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, and "to endeavor to realize the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." Kim Jong-un knew that if he announced his abandonment of nuclear arms during the forthcoming “Trump-Kim” summit, he would be deemed by the international community as “showing weakness,” or even “surrendering.” For this reason, he took a step in advance by choosing a more reliable ally and made a declaration of “denuclearization” during the Kim-Xi summit, and emphasized that this was the "bequeathed instructions" of his forbearers. This manifestation is Kim Jong-un's way out for “denuclearization” and is also the precious gift he presented to Beijing during his trip.

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