NORTH KOREA/NUCLEAR/SINGAPORE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “North Korea wants the United States to know: It’s not about the money. In the flurry of diplomacy to get the planned Singapore summit talks between President Trump and Kim Jong-un back on track, North Korea has been emphatic that it will not relinquish its nuclear weapons in exchange for American economic aid. Earlier this week, Rodong Shinmun, North Korea’s main state-run daily newspaper, sharply criticized American news outlets as ‘hack media on the payroll of power’ for featuring United States officials discussing how aid would flow toward North Korea if it agreed to give up its nuclear program…That was a clear rebuke to Mr. Trump’s strategy of dangling the promise of prosperity if North Korea agrees to denuclearize…Although there is clear evidence that the international sanctions on North Korea are biting, there are several reasons the North might not be tempted by economic incentives alone. For one, it has made clear that its top priority is its security. But it also does not want to appear as if it is desperate for handouts Mr. Kim is a proud leader who does not want to appear vulnerable or susceptible to economic bribes. And the North does not want to be too dependent on the United States — or any other country — for its economic well-being.”
-Motoko Rich, “Trump Dangles Aid Before North Korea. But Does Kim Jong-un Want It?,” The New York Times online, June 1, 2018