North Korea and the US are engaged in an intense battle of nerves over what the conditions will be to enter talks to find a solution to the nuclear issue. While there has been some progress, at least in the sense that they are moving closer to talks, there is still a wide gap separating the two sides, suggesting that there is still a long way to go. Now is when flexibility is needed, grounded in a realistic assessment of the situation.

On Apr. 18, the North released a statement in the name of the policy bureau of the National Defense Commission. The statement placed a number of conditions on talks, including retracting the UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions that imposed sanctions on North Korea, stopping the military exercises taking place on the Korean peninsula and in surrounding countries, and withdrawing equipment related to nuclear war from the area. On Apr. 16, a spokesperson with the North Korean foreign ministry asked for the US and South Korea to give up their policies of hostility to the North and their nuclear blackmail.

There is no hope of the North’s requests becoming reality. First of all, the US and South Korea are not able to retract a resolution that was adopted by the UNSC. And while stopping military exercises could become a subject of negotiations at some stage, it does not make a good precondition for talks.

The bigger obstacle is North Korea’s obsession with its nuclear weapons and missile programs. In the same breath that the National Defense Commission claims that “ridding the Korean peninsula of nuclear weapons has been and remains the unshakeable will of our military and our people,” it also says that it will maintain its nuclear arsenal until the US and the rest of the world eliminate their nuclear weapons. If there is no hope of North Korea abandoning its nuclear weapons, negotiations are pointless. The North has to accept this reality.

The US has asked the North to show that it sincerely intends to abandon its nuclear program. However, the remarks made by high-ranking US authorities do not have enough specific content to draw the North to the bargaining table. Even though US Secretary of State John Kerry promises to pursue “strategic impatience” instead of the “strategic patience” of the past four years, he keeps repeating that he will secure the cooperation of China, which has influence on North Korea.

While the cooperation of China is obviously important, it will be hard to get the talks off the ground if the US insists that the North take measures to get rid of its nuclear program before the talks begin. In particular, the US needs to take a forward-looking approach to talk about eliminating the policy of hostility toward the North, which Pyongyang never fails to bring up.

It is wrong for North Korea to reject inter-Korean talks by linking the issue of reopening the Kaesong Industrial Complex with the overall situation on the Korean peninsula. Kaesong is a symbol of cooperation between South and North. If the complex shuts down completely, both the North and the South will suffer for a long time.

More than two weeks have passed since Pyongyang blocked South Koreans from entering the complex. Almost 200 South Koreans are still there and they have been cut off from receiving even basic supplies, which is an inhumane act by North Korea. The North must restore normal operations at Kaesong.

The South Korean government needs to diplomatically engage the US, China, and others so that talks between the US and North Korea and the six-party talks can get started again. The South also must not abandon efforts to resume inter-Korean talks and improve relations with the North.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]