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Input: The impetus for the talks came in  Kim âs annual New Yearâs speech on January 1  when  he  proposed direct discussions with Seoul âover the issue of improving inter-Korean relations by our nation itself â with the goal to âdefuse the current military tension.â  Kim  also welcomed the upcoming Winter Olympics as a âgood occasion for demonstrating our nationâs prestige â and said  he  wanted to send a delegation.
But while the bilateral talks were widely praised in South Koreaâs media  the US media seemed like a deer caught in the headlights from the first announcement of the breakthrough. Unclear how to respond to a possible outbreak of peace  the press immediately zeroed in on the section of Kimâs New Yearâs speech where he declared that his ânuclear forces are capable of thwarting and counteringâ anything from the United States.  Kim  also reminded Washington that the ânuclear buttonâ is on  his  office desk âall the time.â
Although the Supreme Leader left out some of the harsh anti-US language heâs used in previous declarations  the implied threat became the story for nearly every US media outlet covering his New Yearâs speech. At CNN  for example  reporter Brian Todd went on the air to warn Wolf Blitzer that the prospect of talks was dangerous because it could mask a North Korean military attack during the Olympics. In some broadcasts  Kimâs offer to talk  and Moonâs quick endorsement  were barely mentioned.
 Kim âs reference to  his  nuclear arsenal also drew a typical response from President Trump.  He  took to Twitter to declare that  he   too  had a âbutton â but it was âmuch bigger & more powerfulâ than Kimâs.  His  childish taunt quickly led to speculation about  his  state of mind and fitness to be president  a topic that dominated the White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sandersâs first media briefing of the year.
Asked at a press briefing at Camp David about the potential for negotiations with Kim  he replied: âSure  I always believe in talking.â¦ absolutely I would do that.â Trump âappeared to be strongly indicating that he would join talks with North Korea after the high-level inter-Korean talks  if the conditions are right â South Koreaâs liberal Hankyoreh concluded.
In the lead-up to the talks in Seoul  the mood was close to jubilant. âHopes are high that inter-Korean relations will improve â Hankyoreh reported on January 4. âSince  Kim  delivered  his  New Yearâs address on Jan. 1  North Koreaâs actions have been completely aligned with the Southâs response.â
The pace was set early on by The New York Times  in a front-page story on January 1 posted literally hours after  Kimâs New Yearâs speech .  It  instantly became the leitmotif for media coverage throughout the week.
Behind Kimâs New Yearâs declaration âlies a canny new strategy to initiate direct talks with South Korea in the hope of driving a wedge into its seven-decade alliance with the United States â reported Choe Sang-Hun and David Sanger  the latter a recipient of dozens of US intelligence leaks about North Korea over the years.
In the Choe-Sanger article  the Times cited Robert Litwakâa senior vice president at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars who is well-known in Japan and Korea for his hard-right views on security issuesâto back its claim that Kim is seeking to âtake the side of the South Koreans  against President Trump.â He was then given a large block of space on the Timesâs January 3 op-ed page to spell out his grave concerns for the wayward South Koreans.
âWashington and Seoul should not take Mr. Kimâs bait â Litwak argued. âInstead  the North Korean offer should be put to the diplomatic test through a united Washington-Seoul front.â
Yet despite the clear signals of disapproval from US hard-liners   the Moon and Kim governments pressed on   saying  they  would soon embark on âworking-levelâ talks to discuss the details of the Northâs participation in the Olympics  the family visits  and âsolve bilateral issues among  themselves  without relying on outsideâ forces  according to the Joongang Daily.

South and North Korea Hold Talks; US War Hawks Alarmed at Prospect of Peace