Stephen Biegun brings up possibility of trilateral summit

U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun has floated the possibility of holding a trilateral summit between the two Koreas and the United States, in an apparent indication that an actual declaration to end the Korean War can be made with Washington and Pyongyang working to include a formal end to the war and the partial provision of an inventory of the North’s Yongbyon nuclear facilities in an agreement to be made at the second summit in Vietnam. This is the first time that a key official in the Trump administration has mentioned the likelihood of declaring an end to the Korean War by the three sides.

Biegun made the remark during a meeting with a visiting South Korean parliamentary delegation led by National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang in Washington D.C. on Monday (local time). According to the delegation, the U.S. special envoy on North Korea expressed hope that the two Koreas and the United States will someday be able to hold a trilateral summit. “It’s a long road to normalizing ties with North Korea, signing a peace treaty and establishing the foundation for economic prosperity on the Korean peninsula, but (the United States) has chosen to (work toward that),” Biegun was quoted as saying.

The U.S. envoy also reportedly said the two sides will start narrowing their differences in the next round of talks. This signals the U.S. administration’s intention to include an agenda with which all three sides are concerned in an agreement, if possible, to draw up a blueprint for the peace regime and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.


Na-Ri Shin journari@donga.com