Congressional leaders express support for Tillerson’s dialogue proposal with North Korea

Congressman Ami Bera, co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Korea

Confusion over White House’s stance on Secretary of State’s offer for talks without preconditions

Congressman Ami Bera, co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Korea

Though the White House adopted a critical attitude toward US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s proposal for talks with North Korea “without precondition” just one day after the proposal was made, members of Congress and government officials continue to say that Tillerson’s proposal should be considered in light of the serious situation on the Korean Peninsula.

Ami Bera (Democrat), co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Korea referred to Tillerson’s proposal in a keynote address for a forum hosted in Washington on Dec. 14 by the National Unification Advisory Council. “If we can relax tensions on the Korean Peninsula and in the region and seek a way forward, we need to initiate dialogue, even if that’s the form it takes,” Bera said.

Even US Senator Lindsey Graham, who takes a hardline on North Korea and recently made controversial remarks about removing the families of US soldiers from South Korea, told the Atlantic in an interview on Dec. 13 that he “takes the possibility of war seriously” and that, in order to prevent war, he would support directs talks with North Korea “without a whole lot of preconditions”

“I’m not taking anything off the table to avoid a war,” Graham said, even indicating that a summit between Trump and Kim Jong-un might be possible. Graham argued that the chance of Trump launching a preemptive strike was 30%, but that this would increase to 70% if Pyongyang tested another nuclear device.

“We should exercise direct diplomacy as well as sanctions. That is our policy, which is based on pressure and engagement,” Ambassador Joseph Y. Yun, the US Special Representative for North Korea Policy, told reporters on Dec. 15 during a visit to Thailand, according to a Reuters report. Yun emphasized that Tillerson’s remarks mean that the US is genuinely interested in dialogue with North Korea.

By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent

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