As Donald Trump’s second administration approaches, Kim Yong Chol, a key figure in the 2018 North Korea-U.S. denuclearization negotiations and summits, has reappeared in North Korean media, attracting attention.
The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the Workers’ Party, reported on Wednesday that Kim Jong Un, the General Secretary of the Workers’ Party, paid tribute at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun on the 13th anniversary of Kim Jong Il’s death. North Korean media confirmed that Kim Yong Chol also accompanied Kim Jong Un during the visit.
Kim Yong Chol, who previously headed the Workers’ Party’s United Front Department and chaired the Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Committee, gained international attention in 2018 as North Korea’s chief negotiator during the denuclearization talks between North Korea, South Korea, and the United States.
He notably visited the White House to deliver a personal letter from Kim Jong Un to President Donald Trump. Additionally, he held high-level talks with then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, playing a critical advisory role.
However, the failure of the negotiations led to a decline in Kim Yong Chol’s political standing. In 2019, he was removed from his position as head of the United Front Department, with rumors circulating that he was subjected to “revolutionary measures,” a form of internal discipline. Although he returned as head of the United Front Department during the 8th Party Congress in 2021, his political influence was not fully restored, especially after the abolition of the party’s position dealing with South Korean affairs. He faced further setbacks in 2022, again stepping down from the United Front Department.
Kim Yong Chol began to reestablish his position in June 2023, when he was reinstated as an advisor to the United Front Department and as a candidate member of the Politburo during a plenary meeting of the Workers’ Party. Since then, he has appeared regularly in North Korean media, signaling a notable recovery in his political standing.
Nevertheless, given the failure of the denuclearization talks during Trump’s first term and the subsequent shift of U.S.-related issues to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it appears unlikely that Kim Yong Chol will return to the forefront of negotiations even if North Korea-U.S. talks resume under Trump’s second term. Instead, Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, a close confidante of Kim Jong Un with extensive experience in North Korea-U.S. denuclearization negotiations, is expected to take the lead.