Multiple government sources told a South Korean newspaper that Seoul is drafting measures for rapprochement with North Korea if Pyongyang does not do anything provocative.
The diplomatic outreach would begin next year, those sources say.
The South Korean government is currently drafting a confidential ‘”roadmap for denuclearization,” which contains various tactics for reaching out to the North.
The plan was mentioned by President Moon Jae-In’s advisory panel for state affairs. Officials on the panel said the plan would be completed by year’s end.
“All proposals are based on the assumption that the North does not carry out additional provocations,” one source told the paper.
In addition to outreach, the plan may also include a suspension of U.S.-South Korean war games. [source]
(Analyst comment: North Korea has been steadfast in its refusal to give up its nuclear weapons program. This outreach smells like a Moon initiative; he has pushed diplomacy over confrontation since before taking office. Problem is, Pyongyang isn’t interested in denuclearization, so this plan seems to be bound for failure before its even launched. The Trump administration is correct: Diplomacy hasn’t worked to prevent the North from developing nuclear weapons in the past, and it isn’t likely to succeed in the future.)
