What does the United States have to gain from the new Trump-Kim summit?

As President Donald Trump floats the idea of ​​a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the question in Washington and Seoul is whether a summit that once dominated world news could retain any real substance.

For Trump, the answer may lie less in new advances than in reviving an old diplomatic bet: the conviction that personal diplomacy can succeed where conventional statecraft has failed.

“I got along very well with Kim Jong Un. I liked him, he liked me,” Trump told reporters Monday — a reminder of his signature tactic of pandering to America’s adversaries, a style that infuriates critics. “I would love to meet him.”

Trump’s approach to North Korea has always been defined by spectacle – the Singapore summit in 2018, the handshake in the demilitarized zone and the failure of the Hanoi negotiations in 2019. While direct engagement briefly lowered tensions and halted North Korea’s nuclear tests, Pyongyang has since significantly expanded its nuclear arsenal, tested missiles at more advanced solid fuel and has aligned itself more closely with China and Russia.

TRUMP SAYS HE’S ‘OPEN’ TO MEET WITH KIM JONG UN DURING ASIA TRIP, NORTH KOREA IS ‘A KIND OF NUCLEAR POWER’

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump attend a meeting on the southern side of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating South and North Korea, June 30, 2019, in Panmunjom, South Korea. (Dong-A Ilbo via Getty Images)

He also claimed to be testing new nuclear-capable drones and underwater satellite systems – and said the negotiations were focused on nuclear disarmament are a failure.

Trump has offered sanctions relief in exchange for denuclearization.

“Well, we have sanctions,” Trump said of possible talking points. “It’s pretty big to start with. I’d say it’s about as big as it gets.”

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In a speech last month, Kim said he had “good memories of Trump” but would only meet with him “if the United States abandoned its hollow obsession with denuclearization.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio US policy towards North Korea remains focused on encouraging Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons.

“Our policy toward North Korea remains the same. It is the denuclearization of North Korea. It is a goal that we have all pursued for decades,” Rubio said.

Growing relations between North Korea and Russia further compound U.S. concerns. North Korea has supplied Russia with troops for its war in Ukraine, and Western officials remain concerned about what Pyongyang is receiving in return for the nuclear-armed state. US officials have warned that Russia could share advanced satellite technology with North Korea.

Trump and Kim met three times during the first presidential term (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The burgeoning relationship between Moscow and Pyongyang constitutes “a national security challenge that must be addressed one way or another,” he added.

North Korea has so far not responded to Trump’s latest overture. On Friday, the president alluded to the difficulty of reaching Kim’s team.

Trump and Kim Jong Un should make a “bold decision” to meet during his Asia trip, South Korean official says.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping and Kim have become closer in recent years. (Getty Images)

“I think they are somewhat of a nuclear power,” he said. “They have a lot of nuclear weapons but not a lot of phone service.”

Kim wants North Korea to be officially recognized as a nuclear power.

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In the absence of a framework allowing progress in recent tensions, any summit risks repeating itself as in Hanoi: a major tragedy, few expected results.

However, some see it as an opportunity. Even a limited freeze on long-range missile testing or nuclear production could stabilize the peninsula — and Trump would remain the only Western leader with Kim’s ear.