[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 98 (Wednesday, June 13, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S3865]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            TRUMP-KIM SUMMIT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, talks between President Trump and 
Chairman Kim in Singapore, as we all know, concluded yesterday. 
Certainly, we are all heartened to see the two leaders engage in a 
dialogue. We feel much better when both President Trump and Chairman 
Kim are talking rather than trading insults and military threats. We 
all want this diplomacy to succeed.
  But now that the dust is settling after the Singapore summit, three 
things are clear. No. 1, Chairman Kim achieved far more than President 
Trump did. No. 2, our adversaries, Russia and China, have gained while 
our allies, like South Korea and Japan, have lost footing and some 
degree of faith in America's reliability. No. 3, the summit was much 
more show than substance--what the Texans call ``all cattle and no 
hat.''
  Let me elaborate. In past agreements with North Korea, the United 
States won far stronger language on denuclearization, and we won 
specific measures to ensure that North Korea was taking steps in that 
direction. Of course, even with the stronger language, the North Korean 
regime repeatedly backtracked from previous American-led agreements.
  The joint statement in Singapore includes none of the concrete 
details that could make an ambitious goal like ``complete 
denuclearization'' close to meaningful. Chairman Kim did not even 
mention his ambiguous comment to denuclearize when he returned home to 
North Korea. It was absent in all the North Korean press. Often you can 
tell how a leader feels from what they tell their people, not what they 
say publicly to the world. In this case, denuclearization was not even 
mentioned.
  Still, President Trump tweeted this morning ``there is no longer a 
nuclear threat from North Korea.'' What planet is the President on? 
Saying it doesn't make it so. North Korea still has nuclear weapons. It 
still has ICBMs. It still has the United States in danger. Somehow, 
President Trump thinks that when he says something, it becomes 
reality--if it were only that easy, only that simple. That is what 
stood in the way of making this meeting more meaningful.
  It is not show. It is not verbiage. It is action. President Trump, in 
his actions, did things that President Kim wanted. I don't know what 
President Kim has done that we want, other than show up, which was a 
benefit for him.
  President Trump agreed to freeze joint military exercises with South 
Korea, and he called them ``provocations''--right out of the North 
Korean propaganda playbook--without the knowledge of South Korea or our 
own military. I guarantee that our military men and women were 
squirming when President Trump called our joint military exercises 
``provocations.''
  These exercises and others that the military conduct around the world 
are designed to ensure that our servicemembers are fully trained and 
ready for action. They are not a provocation, President Trump.
  Adopting the North Korean view on American military exercises, 
which President Trump did, is nothing short of a public relations coup 
for Chairman Kim. It seems that President Trump didn't even think it 
through or consult with anybody. You cannot do this stuff on the fly. 
Saying that the danger from North Korea is over doesn't make it so. 
Saying that these are provocations makes things worse. You cannot do it 
on the fly. You need serious thought because it has consequences. If 
Chairman Kim walked away from these negotiations thinking that it is 
easy to deal with President Trump, Kim might think: I get what I want, 
and I don't have to give him anything. That doesn't bode well for the 
future.

  In the final tabulation, after all the pomp and circumstance has 
faded, it seems clear that Chairman Kim walked away the victor, 
unfortunately. What President Trump achieved on behalf of the United 
States is unclear and difficult to certify. What Chairman Kim achieved 
for North Korea is tangible and lasting.
  No doubt, our Republican friends would be up in arms if a Democratic 
President walked away from a summit with so little to show for it. But, 
of course, while we haven't heard full-throated praise from our 
Republican side--their reactions have been kind of lukewarm--it is not 
close to the criticism they launched at President Obama in similar 
situations.
  In the weeks and months ahead, President Trump and his team need to 
focus on securing real and enduring concessions from the North Koreans 
on plutonium and uranium enrichment, on the destruction of nuclear 
infrastructure, on an ``anywhere, anytime'' inspections regime, and the 
unambiguous end of missile testing.
  These are the things that make a strong nuclear agreement. 
Unfortunately, the Singapore summit produced none of them and talked 
about none of them. We hope that in the future that changes for the 
safety of America, but, again, the emphasis on showmanship as opposed 
to substance will not serve America or the prospects for peace well in 
the long run.
  On one final point, congressional oversight and involvement is 
critical to this process. Secretary Pompeo needs to make clear what the 
process moving forward includes and what, if any, additional agreements 
were made in Singapore. Congress needs to learn the terms for any 
sanctions relief, whether U.S. troop presence in Korea was discussed 
and whether any agreement will include a halt to North Korea's key 
missile programs.

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