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On Mar. 6, North Korea’s Korean Central Television network broadcast a documentary on leader Kim Jong-un and his recent summit with US President Donald Trump in Hanoi. The photo shows a scene of Kim talking with his delegation at the Melia Hanoi hotel on Feb. 26. (Yonhap News)
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Hints at expectations for 3rd meeting amid the subtle shift in mood after Hanoi summit
A North Korean documentary film about leader Kim Jong-un’s 11-day round trip to Vietnam emphasized that “a new history and a new future” can be written in North Korea-US relations. This is in line with a front-page article in the Mar. 1 edition of the Rodong Sinmun stating that Kim and US President Donald Trump had agreed to “continue productive dialogue.” In effect, North Korea has repeatedly confirmed its commitment to dialogue even amid the subtle shift in mood that has been evident since the second North Korea-US summit concluded without a joint agreement. This documentary, which lasted for an hour and 15 minutes, was broadcast on Korean Central Television (KCTV) at 8:30 pm on Mar. 6. The documentary was titled “Comrade Kim Jong-un Pays an Official Friendly Visit to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Juche Year 108 [2019], Feb. 23-Mar. 5.” The section about the North Korea-US summit in Hanoi took up 9 minutes and 50 seconds of the total 75 minutes of the documentary. “The president of the United States once again expressed his determination to sit down with Chairman Kim more often in the future to achieve outstanding results in improving North Korea-US relations,” the documentary said. This line hints at expectations for a third North Korea-US summit. The documentary was more direct and concrete than the article in the Mar. 1 issue of the Rodong Sinmun, which said that the two leaders “bade farewell with the promise of a new meeting.” The section of the documentary about the Hanoi summit added a specific message to what appeared in the Rodong Sinmun’s Mar. 1 report. “Having taken the first step toward a transition, North Korea and the US can overcome these twists and turns and these trials and tribulations, make progress and write a new history and a new future in their bilateral relations,” the documentary said. Notably, it stipulated that this would be possible “if both sides offer a fair proposal under the principle of mutual recognition and respect and if they engage in the negotiations with the right attitude and with the determination to resolve problems.” In short, the North wants its negotiations with the US to be grounded on mutual recognition and respect, a fair proposal, the right attitude and the determination to resolve problems. This message appeared alongside a scene of Kim and Kim walking together for four minutes in the garden of the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi after their one-on-one meeting on the morning of Feb. 28. “Through the process of deepening mutual understanding and continuing good will and respect, our two countries’ relationship will arrive at a beneficial end,” the documentary emphasized. By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
