Page 113 - Trilateral Korea Japan U.S. Cooperation

Korean side quietly thanked the head of the U.S. delegation
for what he said in the meeting.

Solving the Problems: Human Rights Violations

Contrary to misperceptions, the Trump team raised human
rights as the second-most spoken about issue after security
during the Singapore Summit. It should also not be forgotten
that President Trump elevated North Korean human rights by
featuring refugee and South Korean member of the National
Legislature Ji Seong-Ho, who memorably raised the crutches
that took him thousands of miles to freedom when he
attended the State of the Union address by President Trump
in 2018.

During the Hanoi Summit, Kim Jong-Un attempted to
gain the release of sanctions based on the token closure
of the Yongbyeon site, which was already scheduled to be
shuttered. Kim grossly underestimated U.S. intelligence, as
he was overwhelmed when the U.S. side rattled off an array of
other security threats that Kim did not mention. As such, he
withdrew from the Summit and could not even come up with
a counterproposal.

In Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s memoirs, he wrote about
his initial meeting with Kim. Kim said to then-CIA Director
Pompeo: “I heard you are trying to kill me,” to which Pompeo
responded: “How do you know that I am not still trying to do
so?” During this same visit, Pompeo admonished Kim that the
President expects that the U.S. citizens held by North Korea
would be on that plane back to the United States with him.

112 Section II : Human Rights, Abductees, Forced Repatriation of Refugees and the Regional Implications