February 28, 2019
The devil will be in the details as the wording will be carefully scrutinized by all parties.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump were set to continue talks in Hanoi on Thursday, having exchanged what Pyongyang’s state media called “sincere and deep” views on their denuclearization and peace efforts a day earlier.
They are scheduled to meet again at 9 a.m. at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi in the Vietnamese capital for one-on-one bilateral talks before expanding the meeting 45 minutes later to include aides and other officials, according to the White House.
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After holding a working lunch, the two leaders plan to sign a joint statement around 2 p.m.
The contents of the “Hanoi Declaration” is the name of the game.
It remains uncertain whether their deal will contain Pyongyang’s plans for concrete denuclearization steps and Washington’s reciprocal measures.
Kim could seek to trade the shutdown of the Soviet-era Yongbyon nuclear complex for Trump’s declaration of a symbolic end to the 1950-53 Korean War and some sanctions relief if possible.
Speaking to reporters about the possibility of an end-of-war declaration during a Wednesday meeting with Kim, Trump said, “We’ll see.”
The North’s state media reported that the leaders are eyeing a “comprehensive and epoch-making” accord.
“Sincere and deep opinions were exchanged with a view to making comprehensive and epoch-making results in the talks in order to meet the interest and expectation of the whole world for the successful Hanoi summit,” the Korean Central News Agency said, referring to their first-day meeting that lasted around two hours and 20 minutes.
Trump also plans to brief reporters in person on the outcome of this week’s bargaining with Kim before heading back to Washington on Thursday evening.