Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey thinks it’s time for the United States to negotiate directly with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un in exchange for the Chinese to ramp up economic sanctions.
Speaking on CNN, the Democrat said President Trump should take the opportunity during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week to lobby for China to increase its sanctions on North Korea. However, in order to do that, the U.S. will need to give China something it wants, which is direct talks with Kim.
“The only way we’re going to deal with that entire complex of issues is if we negotiate,” Markey said. “If we just see an escalation, we’re going to see an exacerbation of each one of these problems.”
The United States does not talk directly with the Kim regime in order to de-legitimize what it sees as a despotic leader. Instead, China is usually an intermediary between the two countries.
However, Markey thinks the fears about legitimizing the Kim regime are overblown, and instead of talking tougher, it’s time for Trump to use a softer approach with the North Koreans.
“I don’t think it makes any sense for Donald Trump to engage in his saber-rattling,” Markey said. “The more Donald Trump engages in saber-rattling, the more likely Kim will continue to test nuclear weapons, to test ballistic missiles.”
