The Art of Denuclearization

(Source- BK News Briefing 12.12.19 ) Clearly South Korea is one of the parties suffering greatest harm from the mutual distrust between the US and North Korea.

(Source- BK News Briefing 12.12.19 ) Strange, a clever way to protect the mutual promises of the US and North Korea from ever being broken never emerged.

The US special envoy to North Korea for the negotiations, Stephen Biegun, arrived in Beijing today after visiting Seoul and Tokyo, prompting a lot of hopeful speculation in the South Korean media as to whether Choe Son-hui, the North Korean vice Minister of Foreign Affairs or some other North Korean negotiator might show up. Biegun declined to give any statements when he arrived at the airport.

This is a related development:

State Department North Korea envoy confirmed as deputy secretary of state
By Jennifer Hansler, CNN

Updated 5:56 PM ET, Thu December 19, 2019

https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/19/politics/steve-biegun-deputy-secretary-of-state-confirmation/index.html

After the abortive attempt to resume working level negotiations between Biegun and Kim Myong Gil, at Stockholm, last October, Biegun complained that Kim the North Korean working level envoy, wasn't senior enough and didn't really have authority to negotiate. Envoy Kim said that the US side brought nothing new to the table and broke off those talks reciprocating the US side's earlier behavior at the Hanoi summit. Biegun had requested to meet with Choi Son Hui at one point but she had said that Biegun himself was a lower level official. So in Stockholm, Kim Myong Gil was what he got. Kim Hyuk Chol, the prior North Korean envoy, disappeared after the Hanoi debacle. Biegun's appointment to Deputy Secretary seems the latest move in the "you're not senior enough" game.