Introduction
The opposing opinions across the U.S. political divide about the success or failure of the Kim-Trump Summit are quite predictable. One side of the aisle has deemed it a non-event, with vague language and no substantive commitments. The other side has hailed it as a resounding success ushering in a new world order of détente.
To reach a more realistic view of the success or failure of the meeting, (discounting partisan agendas), we need to assess the accomplishments of the meeting independently of the public’s expectations.
In this column, I will identify the obstacles that the leaders needed to overcome going into this meeting, the accomplishments that they achieved, and what specific behavior and conduct helped them to get to where they did. These observations will provide us with guidance in managing our own contentious negotiations.
Overcoming Obstacles
In transactional negotiations, such as the kind that President Trump is accustomed to, there is not usually a history of contentious and acrimonious relationships. The relationship and the negotiation begin simultaneously. There is no need to restore any previously eroded relationship before substantive discussions can begin.
In contrast, the relationship between the U.S. and North Korea has been hostile for generations. Furthermore, personal animosity between President Trump and Kim Jong-Un had exacerbated the situation to the extreme. When each side demonizes the other, productive and constructive talks cannot progress. The hostilities between the two nations and the antagonistic relationship between the two men, was the immediate obstacle that needed to be overcome.
Despite the unrealistic and naive expectations of immediate complete, verifiable, irreversible disarmament (CVID), the true success was accomplishing a modicum of humanizing of one another, so as to facilitate further talks in the future. In this regard the summit was a resounding success!
How They Did It
As I watched the TV coverage of the summit live, two things struck me. First was the difference of demeanor in the two men after they emerged from the initial private face-to-face meeting.
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The opposing opinions across the U.S. political divide about the success or failure of the Kim-Trump Summit are quite predictable. One side of the aisle has deemed it a non-event, with vague language and no substantive commitments. The other side has hailed it as a resounding success ushering in a new world order of détente.
To reach a more realistic view of the success or failure of the meeting, (discounting partisan agendas), we need to assess the accomplishments of the meeting independently of the public’s expectations.
In this column, I will identify the obstacles that the leaders needed to overcome going into this meeting, the accomplishments that they achieved, and what specific behavior and conduct helped them to get to where they did. These observations will provide us with guidance in managing our own contentious negotiations.
Overcoming Obstacles
In transactional negotiations, such as the kind that President Trump is accustomed to, there is not usually a history of contentious and acrimonious relationships. The relationship and the negotiation begin simultaneously. There is no need to restore any previously eroded relationship before substantive discussions can begin.
In contrast, the relationship between the U.S. and North Korea has been hostile for generations. Furthermore, personal animosity between President Trump and Kim Jong-Un had exacerbated the situation to the extreme. When each side demonizes the other, productive and constructive talks cannot progress. The hostilities between the two nations and the antagonistic relationship between the two men, was the immediate obstacle that needed to be overcome.
Despite the unrealistic and naive expectations of immediate complete, verifiable, irreversible disarmament (CVID), the true success was accomplishing a modicum of humanizing of one another, so as to facilitate further talks in the future. In this regard the summit was a resounding success!
How They Did It
As I watched the TV coverage of the summit live, two things struck me. First was the difference of demeanor in the two men after they emerged from the initial private face-to-face meeting.
Read more -->
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