The United States and South Korea have reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a long-standing cornerstone of their North Korea policy. The shared stance was clearly stated in the joint fact sheet on trade and security released on Friday.
Moreover, the two allies also agreed to work together to implement the joint statement from the 2018 U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore. The move is widely interpreted as a strategic effort to ease growing concerns that former President Donald Trump might formally recognize North Korea as a nuclear power and shift toward nuclear arms reduction talks.
By upholding the goal of complete denuclearization, Washington and Seoul effectively avoided contentious debates over recognizing North Korea as a nuclear-armed state or engaging in nuclear disarmament negotiations.
The joint fact sheet, summarizing the outcome of the October 29 U.S.-South Korea summit, states that both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to North Korea’s complete denuclearization and to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. It also notes that they agreed to cooperate on implementing the 2018 Singapore joint statement.
This joint fact sheet serves as a unified document released by the United States and South Korea in both English and Korean. In past diplomatic exchanges, the two countries have at times issued documents with wording tailored to their respective interests; however, this fact sheet reflects a complete consensus between the allies.
Before launching his re-election campaign, U.S. President Donald Trump referred to North Korea as a nuclear power. Although the term differs from the official nuclear-weapon state designation under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), experts widely interpreted it as Trump’s de facto acknowledgment of North Korea’s nuclear status.
Recognizing North Korea as a nuclear power would fundamentally change the starting point and objectives of negotiations compared to seven years ago. The 2018 denuclearization talks were based on the premise that North Korea illegally possessed nuclear weapons, making the complete elimination of its nuclear program the natural end goal.
However, if the U.S. were to recognize North Korea as a nuclear power, Pyongyang could potentially demand negotiations focused on nuclear arms reduction rather than complete disarmament. This scenario would allow North Korea to officially pursue a strategy of exchanging a portion of its nuclear arsenal and capabilities for economic concessions from the U.S., before withdrawing from negotiations.
Such a development would leave South Korea perpetually living under the shadow of North Korea’s nuclear threat. If President Trump indeed pushes for nuclear arms reduction talks, it could bring major shifts to the security landscape on the Korean Peninsula.
North Korea, having declared denuclearization off the table, is expected to respond forcefully to the U.S.-South Korea summit outcomes. Pyongyang has already announced its withdrawal from the Singapore agreement and enshrined its nuclear power status in its constitution, effectively removing denuclearization from the negotiation agenda. From North Korea’s perspective, this fact sheet can only be interpreted as a direct rejection of their demand to eliminate denuclearization as a precondition for talks.
The U.S. decision to align with South Korea’s position, maintaining preconditions for dialogue that North Korea has publicly rejected, is likely to delay any potential U.S.-North Korea engagement that had seemed to gain momentum during the recent APEC summit in Gyeongju.
From Seoul’s standpoint, this development alleviates concerns about being sidelined by the U.S. on North Korean issues, reinforcing the strength of the U.S.-South Korea alliance. The fact sheet signals that while both countries remain open to dialogue, neither is willing to compromise on core principles.
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui sharply criticized the G7 foreign ministers’ statement reaffirming their commitment to North Korea’s denuclearization. Choe said that regardless of how long the U.S. and its allies persist, be it 10, 20, 50, or even 100 years, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s nuclear status will remain an immutable reality. Some analysts believe Pyongyang may escalate its response with high-profile military provocations, including possible test-launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.
