Trump security road map omits North Korea reference, raising diplomacy hopes
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The target of ending North Korea’s nuclear threat had been a constant in the National Security Strategy of every US president since the emergence of Pyongyang’s programme in 2003.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SEOUL – US President Donald Trump’s new global security road map has dropped any reference to denuclearising North Korea as a goal, fuelling speculation that Washington may be angling to boost the chances of a diplomatic breakthrough with Pyongyang in 2026.
The target of ending North Korea’s nuclear threat had been a constant in the National Security Strategy of every US president
The omission of any mention of North Korea and its accelerating programme to build nuclear weapons that can be delivered by ballistic missiles capable of striking the mainland US is fanning expectations of a potential revival of talks between Mr Trump and Mr Kim Jong Un, last held in 2019.
Mr Trump has spoken of his willingness to sit down with the North Korean leader in a “proactive” way, indicating he “wants to get something done by taking some action”, said Mr Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification.
“Then I think there is a certain degree of conscious intent there, that the idea of denuclearisation... really doesn’t need to be brought up here,” said Mr Hong, an expert on Pyongyang’s strategic thinking.
In Mr Trump’s previous security blueprint issued during his first term in 2017, North Korea was mentioned 16 times as a threat to “our homeland” and a rogue state that could “use a nuclear weapon against the United States”.
2025’s document lays out his vision of “flexible realism”, which focuses on containing conflict with China over Taiwan by boosting the military power of its allies in Asia, chiefly South Korea and Japan.
Kim Jong Un’s view
Both South Korea and the US on Dec 8 denied there was any policy shift on North Korea, stressing denuclearisation remains the goal.
Still, Mr Kim has made clear that the issue of whether he could come back for talks hinges on their nature, and that he and Mr Trump would have to meet as equal leaders of nuclear states.
“The concept of ‘denuclearisation’ has already lost its meaning. We have become a nuclear state,” Mr Kim told Parliament in September. “I say ‘denuclearisation’ is the last, last thing to expect from us.”
He added: “If the United States, freeing itself from its absurd pursuit of others’ denuclearisation and recognising the reality, wants genuine peaceful coexistence with us, there is no reason for us not to come face to face with it.”
Analysts say peace talks with Mr Trump would cement Mr Kim’s standing at home as a world leader and prove to his impoverished people that he had delivered on a promise that his father and grandfather were unable to keep.
The pair held summits in 2018 and 2019 before negotiations collapsed over Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons arsenal.
North Korea is under heavy international sanctions over those weapons
Stars aligning for talks?
Since the US document release, South Korea has emphasised that it believes the stars may align for the restart of talks with North Korea in 2026 and that signals from key players, ranging from the US to China and Japan, are good.
“What we’ve done so far has produced results in terms of creating the right conditions to advance the peace process on the Korean peninsula,” Mr Wi Sung-lac, South Korea’s national security adviser, said on Dec 7.
Meanwhile, South Korea has been quietly bolstering its own defensive power, pledging to boost military spending to 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2035 with a 7.5 per cent increase for 2026 in keeping with demands from Mr Trump.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth praised South Korea on Dec 6 for being a “model” ally that “will receive our special favour” for agreeing to “assume the leading role in... conventional defence. We are optimistic that other Indo-Pacific allies will follow suit”.
In talks with Mr Trump in October, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung won approval to build nuclear-powered submarines with US help in supplying fuel, given Seoul’s commitment to be free of nuclear weapons. REUTERS
