There is no doubt as to who North Korea's Kim Jong Un will be “supporting” in the U.S. presidential election on November 5th.
Among the “bad guys” Kamala Harris tried to attack at the Democratic Convention: Chosen “I stay away from tyrants and dictators like Kim Jong Un who are supporting Trump,” Kim said. “They know that Trump can be easily manipulated with flattery and favors.”
It was Harris's contemptuous way of showing the dictators with whom her opponent, Donald Trump, has professed complicity. “I fell in love” At the summit held in Singapore in 2018 ( Failure of the next summit (Eight months later, in Hanoi).
Trump said at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last month. “We became very close.” With Kim. Exchange of letters Before and after Hanoi, Trump could say, “It's good to get along with a country that has a lot of nuclear weapons and other weapons,” and he added, “I'm sure he would like me to come back. I think he misses me… When I come back, I'll get along with him.”
The vice president's intensity in her attacks on Kim Jong Un contrasted with her references to the only leader she considered worthy of mention in her speech, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin's name came up only twice. She said that while Trump “encouraged Putin to invade our allies,” she “helped rally a global response to Putin's aggression.”
What about Chinese President Xi Jinping? His name was never mentioned.
The contrast between Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump's positions on Kim Jong Un illustrates why the next presidential election in 2024 is expected to be one of the most tense and bitterly fought in American history. If Ms. Harris ascends from vice president to president, any new negotiations with the North Korean leader will likely be forgotten. The outcome will have implications for America's relations with the rest of the world.
Harris' views on America's Asian enemies and allies are shrouded in mystery. “The Spirit of Camp David” Biden hosted South Korean President Yun Seok-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida here a year ago. North Korea is the immediate enemy for these three countries, but China may be a bigger concern overall, given that North Korea cannot wage a war without China's support.
America's Asian allies would undoubtedly prefer Harris to Trump, who has lost the trust of South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. ambivalence About protecting them. His courtship of Kim Jong Un has unsettled South Koreans, who fear he will act on their own. “The Art of the Deal” By striking a deal to Kim Jong Un's liking, North Korea would accept nothing unless Washington agreed to withdraw North Korean troops, which have already been withdrawn. 28,500.
But Harris has problems. In addition to a lack of foreign policy clarity, A liberal image At the same time, she makes every effort to appear moderate, making her difficult for America's allies to understand.
Take her China policy for example. Huge trade surplus Cooperation with the US, or measures to ensure that US products flow into China as easily as Chinese exports flood the US market. President Trump appears to be taking a tough stance against China, but that is threatening China. High customs duties Excludes heavy industrial products, including automobiles.
But Trump has also been vocal in his defense of Asian allies and in his support of the U.S. “dedication” To Taiwan, I was harassed Since the Democratic administration led by Nancy Pelosi, they have been circling Chinese aircraft and ships. Congressional Delegation It was relocated to the independent island state two years ago.
While Trump is eyeing a new summit with Kim Jong Un, he has not made it clear whether he will go to war for Taiwan, just as he has not pledged to defend South Korea. Japan may see Trump's hesitation as the perfect excuse to abandon its lip service to Article 9 of the constitution. “We will not wage war.” The Constitution and its Training “SDF” Due to regional conflict.
I'm less confident about Harris. Her roots as an Indian-born woman and the daughter of a Jamaican father may give her international perspective, but she has little practical experience in foreign affairs. Not pro-Israel More than Biden, whom Israel has already criticized. Too soft on HamasAmerican candidates seeking national office cannot afford to be seen as anti-Israel.
Harris is Sympathetic to the Palestinians Israeli Obsession with the war effort Casualties continue Already on the riseHarris said, Hostages taken by Hamas terrorists on October 7 In exchange for a ceasefire, they will be released and Hamas will be free to rebuild in case of renewed attacks.
Might Harris' positions on Israel and Hamas be a clue as to where she will stand on North and South Korea? Maybe, but she still seems more trustworthy than Trump, at least as she was during his first term as president. US troops withdraw from South Koreaor demanding that the South pay exorbitant fees for the costs of U.S. military bases, including Camp Humphreys. Largest overseas base.
After all, Harris appears to America's allies as a better candidate to succeed Trump, who served as vice president for nearly four years, and is far more likely to want to perpetuate the Camp David spirit than to destroy the fledgling trilateral relationship, as Trump did in cultivating a friendly relationship with Kim Jong Un, South Korea's arch enemy.
Donald Kirk has been a journalist for more than 60 years, focusing on conflicts in Asia and the Middle East for much of his career as a correspondent for the Washington Star and the Chicago Tribune. He is currently a freelance correspondent covering North and South Korea and has written several books on Asian affairs.
