Seoul expert calls for US-led North Korea talks, reversing 2018 roles
A South Korean government think tank director argues Washington should take the diplomatic lead with Pyongyang now that Seoul has been cut off, inverting the approach from eight years ago.
Lee Sang-sin, director of the Unification Policy Research Division at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said in a report released August 17 that the United States should now lead engagement with North Korea while South Korea takes a supporting role. In 2018, the Moon Jae-in administration brokered momentum between Washington and Pyongyang, helping arrange the first Trump-Kim summit in Singapore. But North Korea declared the two Koreas hostile states in late 2023 and has since refused all communication with Seoul. Lee argues the 2018 playbook cannot be repeated under these conditions. He cited President Trump's recent decision to scale back the Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercise as evidence Washington may already be moving toward direct engagement. The report also referenced Trump and President Lee Jae-myung's exchange at the G7 summit in France in June, where the South Korean president proposed a phased approach starting with halting new nuclear material production before moving toward reductions and eventual denuclearization. Trump responded that it was time to pay attention to North Korea. Senior South Korean officials have said US-North Korea dialogue is the only realistic path forward given that inter-Korean exchange remains frozen and North Korea continues expanding its nuclear capabilities.
How could this affect you
Traced by who's actually in the path of this — not everyone is.
Likely
If you're tracking Korean Peninsula security
A US-led diplomatic track could shift the structure of nuclear negotiations, potentially sidelining Seoul's direct role in shaping terms that affect its own security and leaving South Korea dependent on Washington's judgment about acceptable outcomes.
Possible
If you follow US-China competition in East Asia
Direct US-North Korea talks without Seoul as intermediary could create space for Beijing to position itself as Pyongyang's principal ally, reshaping influence dynamics on the peninsula as Washington focuses diplomatic bandwidth on one-on-one engagement.
Likely
If you're in South Korean defense planning
Reduced joint military exercises signal potential US willingness to trade deterrence posture for diplomatic access, which could require recalibrating readiness assumptions and force deployment plans if the trend continues.
Sources
Every claim here traces back to reporting you can read yourself.
