Trump-Kim meet: SIPRI director predicts possible deal over denuclearization

Seoul [South Korea], May 4 (ANI): A historic face-to-face sit down between the U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could possibly result in a fruitful deal to denuclearize in return for a peace treaty.

This is expected to happen if North Korea's crucial security issues are addressed in a security arrangement that is guaranteed by China, the head of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said.

"It's always possible to deal. There's massive history over the past at least 70 years of peace agreements and treaties being arrived at between two or three parties that previously said they hated each other," SIPRI Director Dan Smith was quoted as saying by CNN.

"So it's possible Kim and Trump come to an agreement," he said.

According to Smith, North Korea fears a potential America-led change of the North Korean regime or what it calls "hostilities" toward the country.

"What Americans, South Koreans and perhaps Chinese all need to be thinking about is how do you address North Korean security issues in a way that satisfies them and let there be a nuclear-free peninsula," Smith added.

He seemed hopeful of the talks between the two leaders, saying they might not agree on the details but will start a process for discussing a peace treaty, and we will set up a high-level working group to look out denuclearization. (ANI)