How Donald Trump’s first minute with Kim Jong-un will play out at Singapore summit
DONALD Trump has said his first minute with Kim Jong-un is critical to the summit’s success. This is how experts expect it to unfold as the US President turns it into a “spectacle”.
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DONALD Trump has said his first minute with Kim Jong-un is critical to the summit’s success.
And experts also believe that first minute will give away a lot as to how the meeting unfolds, agreeing the US President will turn it into a “spectacle”.
The renowned arch enemies are finally about to meet for historic talks in Singapore on Tuesday, at 9am local time (11am AEST), in a landmark breakthrough that could end in Mr Trump being celebrated for diminishing North Korea’s nuclear threat.
That potential feat will bolster his confidence even more than usual, according to body language expert Dr Louise Mahler, who said judging by Mr Trump’s previous encounters with world leaders, he would be the one that immediately attempts to establish dominance.
Especially in this special situation, given the former reality TV star’s ‘mine is bigger than yours’ history with the unpredictable North Korean dictator.
“Trump will give him strong eye contact, he’ll pull him in, especially with the handshake, and he’ll make it look like friendship when really it’s dominance,” Dr Mahler said.
“He’s always testing people. He tested Kim when he said he’d know in the first minute if he’s serious. He’s clearly going to be playing the game.
“We’ve never really seen Kim do anything, so it’s hard to predict how he will react.
“He could very much play the same game, but to be honest I think he’ll turn away or look at his advisers, and he’s usually quite static and set up.
“If he feels threatened, which if anyone does it’ll be him, he will turn or pull away.”
James Cahill, who is the deputy editor of US website Election Watch, said Mr Trump would immediately make the first moments a “spectacle” for the world’s media, and that a photo opp would be the peak of the entire summit.
“Think of the physical stature of Trump, he will be much bigger than Kim, which he will use,” he said.
“We’ve seen Trump use his aggressive handshakes, and this sort of ‘I’m a tough guy attitude’ he has, really, it will just be about the show for him.
“This sort of imagery is all we’re going to get out of this summit.
“North Korea’s incentive is not to move quickly, they’ve had a Cold War and been relatively stable for what 60 years. They’re not going to want anything bold and dramatic. Trump will politically want something bold and dramatic and will declare it the greatest summit in the history of summits.
“But in reality, there has been so little groundwork done, something of this nature should have taken months, if not years, to organise. There’s simply no way that work can be done in the two months since it was announced.
“This was announced to be a spectacle and that’s what he will make it.”
But the political researcher from the University of Melbourne said Kim — interestingly — would appear more relaxed because he had already “won” the summit.
“Whereas Kim, he’s really coming from a position of strength. He’s already a winner,” he said.
“North Korea is a country that has largely been a hermit kingdom. Kim has a legitimate nuclear program, he’s tested half a dozen bombs, he’s shown he has at least the capacity for long range missiles. He’s halfway there.
“Now this is a coming-out party for North Korea.
“He is no longer fearful for his own survival, he has a legitimate deterrent against Japan and South Korea. They’re not afraid anymore.
“He’s gotten so much attention and North Korea has finally been treated as an equal, something that has never happened before.”
Despite Kim’s outward affection with South Korean president Moon Jae-in at their historic summit in April, Mr Cahill said he wasn’t expecting him to be the same with Mr Trump.
“It’s possible his handlers won’t allow him to physically engage,” he said.
“Will they even touch?
“North Korea is largely a cloistered monarchy, we’re in the third generation of his family who haven’t wanted to interact with the world and have been largely cut off.
“But then again, we don’t really know what to expect with these two.”
Once they sit down at the negotiations table, Dr Mahler said she expected Mr Trump to lead the talks.
“I honestly think Kim is a figurehead and he’ll just sit in a neutral position and nod his head,” she said.
“Trump will be very firm.
“But they will both be trying really hard to make it look like it’s working.”
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