The Talks Aren’t Over Until Chris Hill’s Plane Takes Off

Despite this AP report that the talks are over, I’ll refrain from publishing my draft post until Hill actually leaves Beijing on Saturday, and possibly until his plane lands.   While hopes for a successful outcome are high — and to me, that means continued  impasse with maximum cosmetic value — it would be just like the North Koreans to revert to their bottom line negotiating position after all of the other delegates had packed their suitcases, especially right before Christmas.  For the reasons I stated here, it’s objectively in North Korea’s interest to make some kind of deal now, because doing so would buy them at least two years of stall time.  By then, they could get rid of  the least-trusted  5-10% of  their citizenry.