(My interview today along with Dr. Go) Seoul targets 2026 for North Korea talks — seeking momentum amid shifting global order | Arirang News http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7C46…
Photo at top: President Donald Trump greets North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on the North Korean side of the border at Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone, on June 30, 2019.
Speech by Comrade Kim Jong Un at Groundbreaking Ceremony for Building Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at Overseas Military Operations | KCNA Watch kcnawatch.org/newstream/17…
Reading this speech by Kim, given yesterday, it's hard to see him showing up with only hours' notice at Panmunjeom in a week to meet Trump. Much has changed since 2019, and not just Kim's hardware but his outlook.
Photo at top: President Trump briefly steps inside North Korea at Kim Jong Un’s invitation, surrounded by North Korean press, in the Joint Security Area, at Panmunjeom, June 30, 2019.
(My interview today along with Dr. Goh) N. Korea warns of consequences over S. Korea–U.S.-Japan drills; seeks support from China and Russia | Arirang News http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyWb…
Photo at top: Russian President Vladimir Putin walks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and North Korea’s Chairman Kim Jong Un prior to a large military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Beijing, September 3, 2025.
(My interview today, along with Dr. Goh; we also discuss impact of a Trump-Putin summit on North Korea) From military warnings to global maneuvers: Is North Korea poised for a strategic shift? | Arirang News http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGMA…
After watching coverage of the Putin-Trump meeting today, Kim Jong Un surely is telling himself he should never waste any more time dealing with Trump. He can tell the man who wrote 'The Art of the Deal' is in fact utterly incapable of making a real political deal between two nations.
'There was a pathos to the whole event because if you watched closely, particularly during the closing press conference, it appeared Trump understood this as well. He was low-energy. He seemed defeated. He was going through the motions.' http://www.thedailybeast.com/why-trumps-l…
"Trump does not grasp the scale of the Ukrainian crisis… Moscow's objective is of a different nature. It concerns the denial of an entire nation, the assertion of a sphere of influence and endangering the security of the entire continent." | Le Monde http://www.lemonde.fr/en/internati…
The above DPRK video includes Kim meeting Rev. Billy Graham, Selig Harrison and former President Jimmy Carter. Also, the international delegation I accompanied in April 1994 is shown around the 4:30 mark; I’m in the back row, third from the left, of the group shot (just like the header photo at top on the home page).
Before DPRK independence in September 1948 (thanks to Koryo Tours for this info):
• William R. Langdon, Political Counselor to Gen. John R. Hodge, USA, in Korea (October 1946)
• Major General Albert E. Brown, USA, Chief Commissioner, American delegation to the US-USSR Joint Commission, plus members of the U.S. delegation to Pyongyang (July 1947)
*=also attended Kim Il Sung’s funeral in July 1994, and twice met Kim Jong Il in 1992, 1994
→ Does not include the names of U.S. citizens who were likely part of CNN’s crews in its 1992 and 1994 visits (e.g., Mitch Farkas) in which they met Kim Il Sung, nor the name of an individual who met Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il while a Soviet diplomat. Also does not include the names of any Communist Party USA (AKFIC) members who may have met Kim (AKFIC at least got a written response to interview questions); CPUSA head Gus Hall once received a box of presents from Kim. Black Panther leader Eldridge Cleaver visited North Korea twice in 1969-70, but may not have met Kim himself despite his subsequent praise of the regime. For the names of several Korean-Americans who met Kim, likely among at least dozens, please confer Dr. Myers’ comments below.♦
(My interview along with Dr. Goh this morning ET) President Lee’s first month: Direction of inter-Korean relations under the Lee admin. | Arirang News http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ1V…
Here are notes for my response to Question 7 in the interview, which was cut for time:
7. (BARRY) Meanwhile, after the recent U.S. airstrike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, some analysts now believe that achieving “complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization” (CVID) of North Korea is no longer realistic. What message did this military action send to Pyongyang?
“The U.S. won’t publicly jettison its long-held CVID policy because Trump hasn’t offered any new policy whatsoever. But Trump may eventually have to offer security guarantees and liaison offices as steps to normalize relations with North Korea and to ensure they handle their nuclear weapons responsibly. Kim had to have been affected by the sudden and unprecedented American bombing of Iranian nuclear sites, but more importantly, he surely was disconcerted by Trump’s public flirting with the idea of regime change in Iran. That threat of regime change, however distant for the DPRK, is precisely why Kim sought a mutual defense agreement with Russia. Yet, Trump is full of surprises: in May, he met Syria’s new president while in Saudi Arabia, and Monday, he lifted U.S. sanctions on Syria.”
Photo at top: Kim Jong Un kneeling over a coffin of a dead North Korean soldier who presumably died fighting against Ukraine, with Russian diplomats and military officers in the background at a Pyongyang concert (screen capture taken from KCTV, June 30, 2025).
My problem with Gen. Brunson's comments on USFK at the E/W Center and LANPAC is they reflect DOD & INDOPACOM's views but don't necessarily reflect what Trump will do. Look at Trump's Middle East trip last week: He left out Israel, and tried to reconfigure relations with the Saudis, Turkey and Iran.
An option being developed by the Pentagon is to pull out 4,500 troops and move them to other locations in the Indo-Pacific, including to Guam. The idea is part of an informal policy review on dealing with North Korea. The proposal has yet to reach Trump’s desk and is one of several under discussion.
(My interview today, along with Dr. Goh) Kim Jong-un strengthens propaganda on Day of the Sun, B-1B soars over South, while North rallies closer to Russia | Arirang News http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BTm…
Photo at top: Kim Jong-un, alongside his daughter Ju-ae, attends a ceremony in Pyongyang’s Hwasong area on April 15, 2025, to mark the dedication of 10,000 apartments in a newly developed area on the birth anniversary of his grandfather Kim Il-sung.
It’s weird how much of a concession critics have made to Trump’s language of “reciprocal tariffs” to describe what are literally economic sanctions applied to the entire world on “national security” grounds. They are not reciprocal, and the point is to coerce. It’s sanctions
If Yoon is reinstated on Friday, Yoon will quickly ask to meet Trump at the White House within 30 days. It's entirely possible the White House will convey to Yoon that he would not be welcomed in DC, and the President thinks it's in the best interests of the ROK and the alliance that Yoon resign.
Essentially, Trump may not want Yoon to return, not only because he's damaged goods, but because he's a provably unreliable ally as well as someone under indictment. Better Yoon resign, start afresh, and let someone be duly elected within 60 days – who Trump can then put in his place, per usual.
Trump's position on a reinstated Yoon may be that "if you stuck it to Biden, you could do it to me, while we keep 28,500 troops in the ROK. I won't give you the chance to do that to the President of the United States." Trump would be telling Yoon to immediately step down and let elections be held.
To be clear, Trump may take a wait and see attitude toward Yoon, but if Yoon asks to meet asap, at best Trump will be noncommittal; at worst, Trump will have someone like Waltz convey to the ROK that the US does not have full confidence in Yoon and believes it's best for the alliance if he resigns.
Of course, Trump could accept Yoon's reinstatement simply because he needs South Korea to be a reliable security ally and so someone is duly in charge in the ROK. But Yoon's policy toward North Korea conflicts with Trump's desire to dialogue with Kim Jong-un, which could lead to Trump ignoring Yoon.
The Constitutional Court’s ruling on Yoon’s impeachment will be announced at 11 a.m. KT on April 4 (10 pm ET April 3). Here is Arirang News’ outline of three verdict scenarios:
The Constitutional Court’s ruling on President Yoon Suk Yeol’s fate comes tomorrow. The president will be absent. Our correspondent Oh Soo-young explains potential scenarios on Friday:
“The fate of President Yoon Suk Yeol and the nation hangs on the Constitutional Court’s decision on his impeachment Friday. The ruling will mean immediate consequences regarding the governance of the country as the leader’s removal or reinstatement spells out very different outcomes.
If the Court upholds the impeachment, Yoon would become the nation’s second president in history to be removed from office—following Park Geun-hye’s impeachment eight years ago. Effective immediately, Yoon would have to vacate his office for good and leave the official residence in Yongsan-gu District. He would lose all post-presidential privileges—no pension, no office, no staff support, and no burial rights at the National Cemetery. His protection would be limited to basic personal security. With the leadership vacuum made permanent, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would continue as Acting President until an early election is held within 60 days.
On the flip side, if the impeachment is dismissed with prejudice it would mean the Court has found the National Assembly’s grounds for his removal insufficient and the case is closed for good. After over three months of suspension, the President would immediately resume his duties. It’s expected he’d then address the public through a televised message or press conference.
His first tasks back in office are likely to focus first on foreign policy and national security, as there has not been top-level engagement with the United States since President Donald Trump’s inauguration. Yoon would also begin laying out proposals for constitutional and political reform, as pledged during his final court appearance.
While his impeachment case would be closed for good, Yoon would still face investigations regarding his Dec. 3 Martial Law declaration, but during his presidency, would be immune from charges other than for treason and insurrection.
Another scenario is the Court dismissing the case without prejudice. The case would be dropped due to legal or procedural issues, meaning the bench decided not to rule on the grounds or evidence presented. The President would return to office, but the National Assembly could reattempt impeachment in the future.
Six or more justices must consent to uphold an impeachment. Three or more justices deciding against impeachment would lead to a dismissal.
While sources say the justices have reached an understanding on the verdict, the bench is expected to sign off their decision at the last minute, either the evening before or early in the morning of the ruling, to maintain utmost confidentiality.
The ruling takes legal effect the moment the presiding justice reads the decision on live TV.
President Yoon’s lawyers told the press on Thursday that the suspended leader has decided not to go to the Court to hear his verdict in person, taking into the account the need to maintain public order, and presidential security arrangements.
In past impeachment cases, former Presidents Park Geun-hye and Roh Moo-hyun did not attend their ruling sessions either.
Oh Soo-young, Arirang News.”♦
Postscript: A unanimous Constitutional Court decision…
A week before Yoon took office, I met a seasoned ROK FM official in NYC. I said my advice for Yoon was to keep the lines of communication with Kim Jong Un open, even secretly, because closing the door on him would be a sign of disrespecting his efforts to dialogue with Trump. Yoon is now history.
Mark P. Barry's Blog 