Liberty Expose: Instagram Diplomacy With North Korea

If the summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un seems underwhelming, that’s because it is. The term “victory” is being used to describe Kim’s concessions – with the concessions being Kim’s theoretical promise of denuclearization (with no specifics). I have another term that better describes the summit: superficial.  

The only “victory” – if it can be called that – is that the President and Kim have participated in a photo-op, with only the hope for the possibility that actual diplomacy might occur in the further; assuming the two leaders do not return to the state-of-nature involving constant threats of nuclear annihilation. The summit was Instagram diplomacy aimed at constructing the illusion of significant progress.

Diplomacy is not an intrinsic victory, but rather a tactic to achieve national aims. Ben Shapiro of the Daily Wire makes this point; “diplomacy is a tactic; it is not an outcome. The triumphalism that seems to be appearing in so many places where everybody is very excited that President Trump met with Kim; that’s not justified by the outcome yet.” No diplomatic touchdown has been scored; the mere act of breaking from the huddle is being hailed a victory.

First amongst the declarers of victory is Donald Trump. President Trump has gone as far as to tweet “There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea. Meeting with Kim Jong Un was an interesting and very positive experience. North Korea has great potential for the future!”

That is quite a statement to make. Trump is tying in his personal ego with his foreign policy. It is a bad mix for any leader, but it is even more concerning when it is the ego of Donald Trump attached to the non-existent credibility of Kim Jong-un. What will happen when North Korea fails to make progress on denuclearization, as it is certain to do? Will President Trump make excuses for his new diplomatic pal in Pyongyang, or will he take the insult personally and return to attacking Kim again?

North Korea has promised denuclearization. When will this happen? We do not know. How will this happen? They have not said. No specifics, just declarations, and promises from a regime that also claims their dear leader is a master of dolphin training.

What does the Hermit Kingdom get in return for gifting so many promises to America? They get to watch the United States betray our allies. President Trump has promised to cancel military exercises with South Korea. He has reiterated this in another incredible tweet in which he said: “we save a fortune by not doing war games, as long as we are negotiating in good faith – which both sides are!”

Again, that is another mighty assumption to make about Kim Jong-un. Unlike the promises from the Norks, this promise has a date: the next exercise is supposed to commence next year. America has a date to be held accountable, why doesn’t North Korea have one?

I could be wrong about the summit, and let’s hope I am. For all we know, Kim could have been completely art-of-the-deal’d, and a gold-tinted Trump hotel could soon overlook the Juche Tower in Pyongyang. Personal relationships go a long way with dictators who are accountable to no one but themselves.

But there is still a couple years left in the presidency of Donald J. Inconsistency, and this friendship may not last forever. Lest we forget, not too long ago it was feared that there would be a nuclear exchange because the President of the United States was fat-shaming Kim on Twitter. For all we know, this time next year the Doomsday Clock could be moved up to one-minute till midnight because of the late night/early morning observations from @realDonaldTrump. The present isn’t perpetual; a few decades from now the tweets from @POTUS could be displayed at the Smithsonian’s Second Korean War exhibit.