Seoul Sees Little Chance of a Trump-Kim Meeting Around APEC

South Korean officials see little prospect of renewed US-North Korea contact around APEC as tensions on the peninsula remain elevated.

By TCN Diplomacy Desk

South Korea sees little immediate prospect of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un around the APEC summit, despite periodic speculation that a high-level encounter could revive stalled diplomacy.

The assessment reflects the difficult state of relations on the Korean Peninsula. Communication remains limited, military tensions persist and North Korea has continued to develop its strategic capabilities while rejecting many previous frameworks for denuclearisation talks.

Trump's earlier meetings with Kim remain among the most dramatic diplomatic episodes of his first presidency, but they did not produce a durable agreement on nuclear weapons, sanctions or security guarantees.

For Seoul, any renewed US-North Korea engagement would need to be managed carefully. A summit can create political momentum, but it can also bypass the slower work required to produce enforceable commitments.

For now, the signals point towards caution rather than breakthrough. APEC may still provide opportunities for informal diplomacy, but expectations of a Trump-Kim encounter remain low.