Outcome remains as uncertain as Trump-Kim summit itself

Even with just one week to go, there are still doubts whether US President Donald Trump and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea leader Kim Jong-un would ultimately hold their planned summit in Singapore on June 12. On Tuesday, the US said preparations for the June 12 summit in Singapore are going well. But what will the planned Trump-Kim summit yield is as uncertain as the summit itself.

To begin with, there remain huge differences between the United States and the DPRK on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, although Kim has pledged to work toward complete denuclearization and negotiate the terms with the US.

In his New Year's speech, Kim said the nuclear weapons program is complete and now the DPRK's focus will shift to economic development. Information gleaned from Kim's two visits to China suggests he has planned "phased, synchronized" denuclearization, for which he seeks the "goodwill" of the US and the ROK as a prerequisite. And his decision to suspend nuclear and intercontinental missile tests does not contradict his assertion that the DPRK has become a nuclear power.