The Meeting of the Century

Braden Rice, Staff Writer

One of the most anticipated meetings of the year is going to take place in May, when Donald Trump will meet Kim Jong Un to negotiate peace and the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. A source for the New York Times revealed the meeting was organized by South Korean President Moon Jae-In, and that he has worked as a mediator between Kim Jong Un and Trump over the past few months. The meeting will be the first time the United States and North Korea have had any formal dialogue since the North Korean Nuclear Deal was signed in 1994. Many countries around the world are relieved by the prospect of dialogue between the two nations. Of these countries, none are more relieved at the possibility of peace than South Korea, because it stands to lose the most in a war between the United States and North Korea. Tensions between the two nations have gotten worse over the past year, partly because both are led by two of the most controversial heads of state in the world. The LA Times quoted Trump in a press conference in August of last year saying, “North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States, they will be met with fire and the fury like the world has never seen.” Due to extreme rhetoric from both sides, many political scientists expected war to break out in early 2018. Although, in a shocking move, Kim Jong Un called for dialogue with South Korean President Moon Jae-In this past January. South Korea agreed to the talks and struck a deal to form a united Korean team in the 2018 Winter Olympics hosted in Pyeongchang, South Korea this past February. Tensions have cooled down significantly since then, to the point where Kim Jong Un has called for the peaceful reunification of the two countries. Then, this month, Kim Jong Un said he was willing to end North Korea’s nuclear program if Donald Trump and the United States stopped its imperialist threats toward his country. Right now, Donald Trump, Kim Jong Un, and Moon Jae-In are discussing the conditions for the meeting, the outcome of which could either lead to peace or total war.