While President Donald Trump was quick to implore the media to give him “credit” for the announcement late Thursday that he is set to meet with Kim Jong-un in person some time in May, analysts and anti-war groups argued in response to the news that it was South Korea’s persistent diplomatic efforts—not Trump’s “fire and fury” threats—that led to the potentially historic breakthrough.
“It’s a mistake to believe that ‘maximum pressure’ forced North Korea to dialogue; it was Moon’s masterful diplomatic stroke.”
—Christine Ahn, Women Cross DMZ
“Kim Jong-un reiterating his country’s commitments not to test nuclear weapons or ballistic missiles during ongoing diplomacy is excellent news, as is President Trump accepting Kim’s invitation to meet in person for the first time,” said Peace Action president Kevin Martin in a statement on Thursday. “But let the record show, it wasn’t Trump’s bluster or the ‘maximum pressure’ campaign that brought North Korea to the negotiating table, it was South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s willingness to engage without preconditions.”
Christine Ahn, a Korea expert and founder of the anti-war group Women Cross DMZ, echoed Peace Action’s stance in a series of tweets on Thursday, arguing that crediting Trump’s aggressive tactics and U.S. sanctions—as some media outlets did in response to the news—is “a dangerous rewriting of what happened.”
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