March 6-North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said he would suspend nuclear missile tests if the United States agrees to hold direct talks, according to South Korean delegates who met with Kim on March 5. Furthermore, Kim is willing to remove his country’s nuclear weapons if he can be assured that his regime and country no longer face threats, they said.

“North Korea made clear its willingness to denuclearize the Korean peninsula and the fact there is no reason for it to have a nuclear program if military threats against the North are resolved and its regime is secure,” Chung Eui-yong, South Korea’s led delegate of the talks, told reporters.

It is a significant breakthrough for the two countries, which have been in a technical war since 1953. It is a result of both a softening of relations between the two Korean countries during the Winter Olympics and a tougher diplomatic stance by the United States.

Sanctions Squeeze Economy

International sanctions against North Korea are reportedly having an “unprecedented” effect on the North Korean economy, according to a report by the Chosun Ilbo, a South Korean newspaper.

Citing reports by the Korean Institute for International Economic Policy and the Korea Development Institute, the newspaper reported that sanctions are impacting the country’s exports to China and foreign reserves. Last year, North Korean exports to China fell by 37 percent while imports remained the same. In effect, the regime is running out of hard currency.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury Department is increasing pressure on shipping companies doing business with North Korea. It launched new sanctions February 23.

Delicate Diplomacy

The two Korean leaders, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in, are scheduled to meet at a summit on their border in late April.

Mr. Kim has only met foreign visitors 11 times. They include official meetings with representatives from China, Cuba and Syria as well as several unofficial visits, including three with U.S. basketball star Dennis Rodman, according to a news report by Digital Chosun.

So far, the United States has welcomed the news. U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter on March 6: “Possible progress is being made in talks with North Korea. For the first time in many years, a serious effort mad by all parties concerned. The World is watching and waiting! My be false hope, but the U.S. is ready to go hard in either direction!”

North Korean News

The March 5 talks appear to have been productive. Both sides reported positive feedback about them.

According to the Korean Central News Agency, a state-media outlet in North Korea, the Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un held an in depth discussion on “easing the acute military tensions” on the Peninsula. Moreover, he repeated his “firm will to vigorously advance the north-south relations and write a new history of national reunification by the concerted efforts of our nation to be proud of in the world.” The news site reported that Kim expressed thanks that the Olympics provided an auspicious chance for “fellow countrymen of the same blood” to demonstrate “the stamina and prestige of our nation at home and abroad.”

Delegate Schedule

The lead delegate for South Korea Chung Eui-yong is traveling to Washington, D.C. to brief U.S. officials and deliver a message from Kim to Trump. Chung is planning trips to China and Russia while another member of the delegation, Suh Hoon, is scheduling a visit to Japan, according to a news report from Reuters.

Meanwhile, joint U.S.-South Korean military drills are scheduled in April.