Even Fox News, regarded as a pro-Trump outlet, offered a pessimistic outlook on U.S. President Donald Trump's attempt to open talks with Kim Jong-un, chairman of the North Korean State Affairs Commission.
On the 23rd (local time), Fox News ran an article titled "Trump plays nuclear poker with Kim Jong-un — but who holds the cards?" Through the piece, Fox said, "The president is facing a North Korea with far fewer incentives to strike a deal than during his first term," adding, "Trump's revamped approach comes as he is locked in a nuclear standoff with Iran, pulling another unfinished task from his first term back onto the table."
Fox added, "Unlike Iran, North Korea already possesses a mature nuclear arsenal and multiple delivery systems," explaining, "That has narrowed the path to a deal more than eight years ago while leaving Trump almost no viable option to eliminate the threat militarily."
Fox also relayed experts' views that, given North Korea is negotiating from a stronger position than before, the most that can be extracted is a limited agreement. They said the aim is not to pursue North Korea's denuclearization but merely to divert domestic and international attention from the stalemated peace talks and war with Iran.
Victor Cha, Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said, "(The president) wants to get Iran off the (media) headlines," adding, "There is no military solution for a country like North Korea that has 50, 60, 70 nuclear weapons and multiple delivery systems for them." Kelsey Davenport, director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association (ACA), also said, "There is no quick, all-at-once deal to remove North Korea's nuclear weapons," adding, "North Korea can drive negotiations with tougher terms than in 2018."
In particular, experts mainly believe the likely outcome would be fulfilling the North Korean regime's long-held wish for "recognition as a nuclear-armed state." The U.S.-South Korea alliance also appears likely to be tested in the process. Cha said, "On U.S. forces in Korea, North Korea wants them to leave, and South Korea wants them to stay," adding, "What the president wants is completely unclear."