Thread by @benrileysmith

*QUICK THREAD*

After US and North Korea briefings in the last 24 hours we have a much better picture of why talks broke down in Hanoi.

Here’s what appears to have happened...

Kim offered to dismantle his Yongbyon nuclear complex but demanded all economic sanctions imposed since March 2016 be lifted.

Those sanctions targeted N Korea’s economy rather than specifically its weapons programs. It was part of Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign to force Pyongyang to the negotiating table.

Kim and his team argued that they had stopped nuclear and missile tests, so it was only fair that the sanctions imposed over those tests were lifted too.

But the proposal directly contradicted America’s stance from the very beginning - that they wouldn’t lift sanctions until denuclearisation was complete.

Specifically, the idea of giving the North Korean economy a massive boost while Kim continued to hold nuclear weapons (and some secret facilities allowing development to continue) was unacceptable.

As one senior US administration official put it: “To give many, many billions of dollars in sanctions relief would in effect put us in a position of subsidising the ongoing development of weapons of mass destruction in North Korea.”

There were a few other complications.

One, Yongbyon is a sprawling complex 3 miles squared containing 300+ seperate facilities (according to US). But the North Koreans didn’t define what they would dismantle.

Two, the US can’t just unilaterally lift the post-2016 sanctions. They were imposed by the UN and would need its approval to end.

Both sides have calmed tensions + talked up another meeting. US is pleased with progress in Hanoi.

But bottom line is the gap b/w US and Pyongyang is still sizeable. And critical. And can’t be bridged without considerable movement from at least one side.

*end*