Hopes for peace: Kim takes historic step to inter-Korean summit
What's the story
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will walk across the Demilitarized Zone on Friday for a historic summit with the South's President Moon Jae-in, the highest-level encounter yet in a whirlwind of nuclear diplomacy.
Discussion on Pyongyang's atomic arsenal will be high on agenda, as for the first time one of its rulers sets foot in South since Korean War ended 65 years ago.
Kim-Trump meeting
Inter-Korean summit will pave the way for Kim-Trump meeting
The meeting on the southern side of the truce village of Panmunjom, only third-of-its-kind after two in Pyongyang, is intended to pave the way for a highly anticipated encounter between Kim and US President Donald Trump.
It comes after a rapid and spectacular diplomatic dance on the peninsula, orchestrated by Moon and set to the beat of the Winter Olympics in the South.
Denuclearization
Kim offered denuclearization on table in exchange for security guarantees
Kim sent a delegation headed by his sister to Winter Olympics and offered to put denuclearization on the table in exchange for security guarantees.
Trump accepted his proposal for a summit.
It is a stunning contrast from last year when Pyongyang carried out its sixth and by far most powerful nuclear test to date and launched missiles capable of reaching the US mainland.
Quote
North Korean wordings can be interpreted in different ways
"There are many different ways to interpret North Korean wordings, literal interpretation, reading between the lines, or reading it in reflection of one's own hopes," said Koh Yu-hwan, professor of North Korean Studies at Dongguk University, adding all three players had different motivations.
Sanctions
UN Security Council imposed sanctions on North Korea
While Kim and Trump traded personal insults and threats of war, the UN Security Council imposed several sets of sanctions on North, including measures targeting its crucial coal, fishing and textiles sectors along with oil imports.
Washington is demanding Pyongyang to give up its weapons it has spent decades developing and says it needs to protect itself from a US invasion.
Moratorium
Pyongyang announced moratorium on nuclear tests
Pyongyang announced a moratorium on nuclear tests and intercontinental ballistic missile launches.
It made no further commitments, but that, however, did not stop Trump tweeting: "We haven't given up anything & they have agreed to denuclearization (so great for World), site closure, & no more testing!"
South's President Moon also said it was "a significant decision towards total denuclearization of the Korean peninsula".
The motive
What's the motive of all three leaders behind the meeting?
"The most urgent thing for Trump is preventing North Korea from completing an ICBM," Koh Yu-hwan said.
For North Korea, it's preventing a US military strike and negotiations as a nuclear power to improve its economy.
"South Korea wants to bring North Korea and the US to dialogue for a peaceful resolution and to revive South-North ties," he added.
Backing denuclearization
North backs denuclearization; wants US troop's withdrawal from South Korea
In the complex, nuanced world of Korean nuclear negotiations, the same phrase can mean radically different things to the different parties.
North Korean backing for denuclearization of the peninsula has previously been code for the withdrawal of the 28,500 US troops stationed in the South and Washington's nuclear umbrella over its ally, seen as a non-starter for the US.
Previous summit
Previous inter-Korean summit was held between Kim's father and Dae-jung
The two previous inter-Korean summits saw Kim's father and predecessor, Kim Jong Il, meet the late South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, who received Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in 2000, and Roh Moo-hyun in 2007.
The summits did little to slow the North's military pursuits, which have accelerated under Kim, who may now feel he can negotiate from a position of strength.