Experts: Agreement a big nothingburger — except for Trump appeasing Kim
Real estate pitch-man turned apprentice U.S. president Donald Trump and North Korea’s bloody-handed tyrant Kim Jong-un signed a four-point “peace pledge” in Singapore.
In four bullet points, they laid out goals of future rounds of negotiations without specifying what immediate steps either side would take. Trump said there would be “many meetings” between the two men.
They agreed to establish new relations between the countries and committed to “build a lasting and stable peace regime on the Korean peninsula,” where the U.S. and South Korea are still technically at war with the North.
Kim reaffirmed that he would “work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula,” though there was no indication the two men had agreed on what that would mean.
And they also agreed to work together to recover “POW/MIA remains,” presumably American soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War.
The White House has not yet released the document, but the words were clearly visible in photographs taken when Trump displayed it to the gathered reporters.
Experts, pundits, and top twitterati reacted with dismissive derision — if not outright dismay:
God, this is just depressing. All that hype for this? All that drama and the Nobel talk? Come, art of the deal. This is it? This is, well, pathetic given that the US president was personally involved. https://t.co/1TKaCFXplP
— Robert E Kelly (@Robert_E_Kelly) June 12, 2018
The fact that you think this was a success means you are a monumental idiot who knows nothing about North Korea or an extraordinary liar. Either way no one with half a brain thinks DPRK repeating lies of the past while we unilaterally give up joint exercises is a “win”.
— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) June 12, 2018
DTs diplomacy is “can I build condos and make money off this place”. If only Trudeau starved and murdered his fellow Canadians Trump would label him as “very strong”.
— Danny (@DanielBSNRN) June 12, 2018
This pic horrifies me. Trump has legitimized evil & ensured Kim a propaganda victory that will last decades in imprisoned North Korea. I won’t lie, I’ve been drinking heavily this last year as I’ve seen everything I believe in trashed by this criminal@LouiseMensch@thespybrief pic.twitter.com/7enbx56pJC
— Pete EVANS (@911CORLEBRA777) June 12, 2018
I agree. So I fixed the pic and made it a meme. pic.twitter.com/uUuxupoRys
— The Extra #Basta Rinse Preebis Twëëtër Account® (@RinsePreebis) June 12, 2018
Because the one thing North Korea has always wanted is to be viewed as a legitimate global leader, first by the United States, and then Europe. Trump gave Kim that legitimacy WITHOUT getting anything in return. This agreement is less than all previous agreements that Kim ignored
— DPTBW ☘ (@DPTBW) June 12, 2018
My hot take on the Trump-Kim summit: a giant nothingburger and photo op. But then it was always going to be this way. Denuclearization would be a great thing, but it isn’t going to happen. And @realDonaldTrump, the great dealmaker, gave away more than he got. In return for…
— Roger Barris (@barris4congress) June 12, 2018
NBC’s Richard Engel says Kim Jong-un was “the biggest winner”: “He got the recognition with the president of the United States on a world stage, and all he had to do was sign a piece of paper reaffirming something that he has already said in the past.” https://t.co/NYMBXcGtkd
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) June 12, 2018
#TrumpKimSummit #MoronInChief #BlueTsunami2018
With the exception of his gullible, Koolade-drinking followers, Trump is the only one in the world that trusts Kim Jong Un. Kim’s family doesn’t trust him.https://t.co/Qct831Wcez
— Thomas Reich (@gollum1419_g) June 12, 2018
Everything Trump has done—betrayal of allies, appeasement of enemies, abandonment of verifiable arms control—sends one message: Get your own nukes. https://t.co/mwE2CX6I5z
— Will Saletan (@saletan) June 12, 2018
