Vox: Taking Trump’s Korea Diplomacy Seriously

Diplomacy and building good relations with other nations requires trust over the long term with policies based on firm values and principles. The Trump administration instead engages in abrupt policy shifts that puzzle allies and foes alike while leaving a trail of broken promises. Matthew Yglesias of Vox does not expect the United States and North Korea to reach a deal for ending the latter’s nuclear weapons program - though he calls Donald Trump “wise” for following the lead of South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in, reversing policy and conceding to plan a June meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un. The complex task of eliminating North Korea's nuclear weapons program could go wrong if the agreement's details are meaningless; if the United States capitulates, overlooking its own interests or those of allies; or if the deal does not materialize and the Trump administration launches a military attack. Yglesias describes a pattern of Trump’s deal making: “he exploits normal human nature to sucker people into trusting him, and then he exploits his own ever-growing fame and power to get away with breaking the rules.” – YaleGlobal