'Better nothing than bad': senators support Trump's decision not to sign an agreement with Kim Jong-un

Representatives of both parties agree that the absence of an agreement is better than a bad agreement.

US senators from both parties supported the decision of President Donald Trump complete early the summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, unless a negotiated nuclear agreement acceptable to the US is submitted for discussion, writes "Voice of America".

“Better no agreement than bad,” - said Democratic Senator from Virginia state Joe Manchin told reporters on Thursday.

“Part of the art of entering into agreements is to know when to get out of the negotiations,” said Republican Senator from Dakota, Mike Rounds. “I am glad that he (Trump) did just that and he had enough practical ingenuity to say: even if I want to make an agreement, this is not the right moment.”

Trump's second summit and Kim Jong-un, held in Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi, ended abruptly on Thursday. It is reported that the reason for the termination of the negotiations was disagreement over the timing and pace of mitigation of sanctions against North Korea in relation to the denuclearization period.

“If the president and his team consider that we are unlikely to achieve anything, then it’s good that we made no concessions,” said Democratic Senator from Virginia Tim Kane.

At the same time, senators differ in their assessments of the administration’s policy toward North Korea, a country whose nuclear program has been a painful problem for the United States for decades.

“I definitely would not want any president to sign a bad agreement, but usually they do preparatory work in advance to predict, if not predict with accuracy, the likely outcome. In this case, apparently, this was not done, ”said Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois in an interview with Voice of America.

“Diplomacy from the standpoint of narcissism does not work,” said Democratic Senator from the state of Hawaii, Maisie Chirono. “I don’t think that the president is able to impose any agreement on Kim Jong-un.” In my opinion, Kim Jong Un has very clearly defined what he wants: that we withdraw our troops from the Demilitarized Zone. ”

Republicans, by contrast, appreciate Trump's efforts.

“The president deserves praise for his personal desire to convince Kim Jong-un to choose a different path,” said Mitch McConnell, the leader of the Senate majority. “It was a wise decision to meet with Kim Jong-un in Singapore (last year) and in Vietnam to show the North Korean delegation the level of economic prosperity that is possible if he decides to take the new path.”

“I think whenever people talk to each other instead of fighting with each other, there is an opportunity to improve the situation,” said Senator Michael Rounds. – As Ronald Reagan said: “Trust, but verify.” And I’m very glad that the current president is following the same path.”

Democratic Senator from Oregon Ron Wyden considers any Reagan and Trump comparisons to be unfounded.

“Ronald Reagan, although I often disagreed with him, had real principles. I don’t see that with these guys (the Trump administration), Wyden said in a conversation with a Voice of America correspondent. “It doesn’t seem like the administration went to Hanoi with a clear plan.” This is classic Trump. He was going to improvise, but the end result was complete disappointment.”

Analysts also expressed their views.

"Trump made the right choice, preferring the principles and longtime allies to prematurely proclaiming peace and his new friendship with Kim Jong-un," said the Korean expert from the Washington Heritage Foundation Bruce klingner. - Although the details are still unclear, apparently, in exchange for the lifting of all sanctions, North Korea offered only to close the nuclear facility in Yongbyon. Although it seems tempting, a bad deal is really worse than no agreement. ”

“It could have been worse,” summarized the senior researcher of the Atlantic Council. Robert Manning. “And this illustrates the shortcomings of diplomacy coming from above.”

According to Manning, the summit would be more productive if the American and North Korean negotiators worked out the general principles of the agreement in advance.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday, he announced the possibility of further negotiations with Pyongyang, but at the moment there is no clear plan of action in this regard.

“We haven't set a date. I think this will take some time. We all need a little adjustment. Let's see... there has to be a reason for conversation,” Pompeo said, speaking to reporters on board a plane flying from Vietnam to the Philippines.

The Head of State Department expressed hope for progress in further negotiations with the DPRK. According to him, he “saw that both leaders are sympathetic towards each other,” which means that the continuation of the dialogue is quite achievable.

“We have made some progress. But we didn’t get what we hoped for,” Pompeo admitted.

The state secretary refused to tell the details of the talks with Kim, but noted that the demand of the DPRK leader to completely lift the sanctions - which is why the summit ended earlier than planned - “did not come as a surprise” to the American side.