The next day.
Of the United States, China, and Russia, the first appointnt I made was with the chief U.S. representative.
“Good morning, Director Christopher Hill.”
Director Christopher Hill took the hand I offered and smiled.
“I’ve heard a great deal about you, President Kim Muhyuk. That you’re the one who drew out North Korea’s reform and opening. You accomplished sothing even diplomats like couldn’t. It’s truly impressive.”
As expected of a seasoned fox who’d spent decades on the international diplomatic stage—he was exceptionally good at flattering people.
Well, being able to say pleasant things as naturally as breathing was a skill in itself.
I laughed broadly and waved my hand.
“It wasn’t anything particularly difficult. Wasn’t it only possible because the United States isolated North Korea in the first place?”
Give and take—if sothing cos your way, sothing has to go back.
When I gilded him with a friendly smile, Christopher nodded in satisfaction.
“Let’s sit down first. Why don’t we continue our conversation over a light breakfast?”
I sat across from Christopher.
Freshly baked bread and coffee were laid out on the table.
While eating and drinking, we spent so ti chatting casually.
“I heard you were dispatched as a special envoy during the Kosovo crisis and worked for peace in the Balkans.”
“So you knew about that. I really thought I was going to die back then. Ah, co to think of it, I rember hearing that Black Bear provided considerable assistance to the U.S. military during the Kosovo crisis.”
By the ti the coffee had cooled, Christopher finally brought up the main topic.
“The Secretary of State told to negotiate with you. He said you could draw concessions from China and Russia.”
I set my coffee cup down and smiled.
“Did he say that? As you know, concessions aren’t sothing only one side makes.”
“The United States has no intention of making even the slightest concession regarding the North Korea issue this ti.”
So greedy. I swallowed a bitter smile inwardly and replied.
“If you truly had no intention of making concessions, Colin Powell wouldn’t have called to Singapore in the first place. If we go head-to-head, these talks will end with nothing gained. The inter-Korean summit will happen no matter what—even if the sky splits in two—and there might not be a seat for the United States there. Are you okay with that?”
“Do you think South Korea could independently lift sanctions on North Korea without U.S. approval?”
“I think you’re misunderstanding sothing. I’m not here on behalf of the South Korean governnt. I’m here for my business. You can grab South Korea and shake it all you want—I don’t care.”
Everyone seems to be mistaken. What matters to is my business and my people.
“......Aren’t you Korean?”
“That’s right. But I’m not a patriot—just a greedy man. People talk endlessly about peace and whatnot, but... you and I both know that’s nonsense, don’t we? Everyone moves for their own benefit.”
Peace on the Korean Peninsula? Peace in East Asia?
The United States isn’t so superhero trying to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear program for lofty reasons.
They’re involved purely for their own interests.
“The reason China and Russia sided with the United States is simple. They don’t like North Korea having nuclear weapons either. That said, they also wouldn’t welco the United States exerting excessive influence over North Korea. At so point, shouldn’t everyone make concessions within reason?”
Even the United States can’t completely exclude China and Russia from the North Korea issue.
You could tell from the fact that six-party talks had been held in my previous life.
“......What do you think China and Russia truly want?”
“At the very least, both countries say the sa thing: ‘There must be no situation where U.S. troops directly enter North Korean territory.’”
At my words, Christopher nodded slightly.
He seed about to say sothing, his lips moving—then suddenly he sprang to his feet.
His gaze was fixed on the restaurant entrance. Remaining seated, I turned my head to look as well.
An elderly man with white hair and glasses was walking in through the door.
‘Henry Kissinger?’
I recognized him instantly.
In the United States, opinions about him were sharply divided.
So hailed him as the greatest diplomat in Arican history; others cursed him as a devil who committed war cris.
But regardless of what anyone said, one thing was certain—he wielded enormous influence over U.S. foreign policy.
“Christopher. It’s been a while.”
Christopher dipped his head slightly in greeting.
I stood up as well, watching him. Kissinger, who had been walking slowly, stopped in front of .
“You must be Kim Muhyuk. Or should I call you Charlie?”
I nodded and extended my hand.
“Yes. I’m Kim Muhyuk. Please feel free to call Charlie.”
“So a remarkable figure erged from that tiny peninsula. ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) It’s the first ti I’ve ever seen Colin Powell praise soone until his mouth went dry.”
He smiled as he shook my hand. After finishing the handshake, Kissinger asked Christopher,
“Did I interrupt?”
“Not at all, Kissinger.”
“Then step aside for a mont. I have sothing I’d like to discuss with this young man privately.”
“Yes. Understood.”
At Kissinger’s request, Christopher left the restaurant without protest.
“If you don’t mind, let this old man have a word with you.”
Kissinger sat in the seat Christopher had been occupying.
Christopher was a veteran in his own right, but compared to this battle-hardened old general, he was practically a fledgling.
Suppressing the tension crawling up my spine, I sat back down and asked,
“You said you wanted to talk to ?”
“Indeed. You may already know, but I’ll be visiting Korea at President Yoon Changho’s invitation. A week before the inter-Korean summit.”
I had seen a newspaper article about it. When I didn’t respond, Kissinger continued.
“But I was more curious about you than President Yoon Changho. You were the one who made him president, weren’t you?”
“......I’m just a businessman. I don’t have that kind of power.”
Kissinger smiled at my answer.
“Well, if you say so.”
This old fox. He knew everything and was just probing.
It seed he’d known from the start what my answer would be.
He changed the subject.
“I have fairly close ties with China’s top leadership. They’ve been contacting incessantly over this matter.”
Kissinger was the first among Arica’s top officials to visit Beijing in history, paving the way for Nixon’s visit to China.
Since then, he’d been regarded as one of the foremost China experts in the United States.
“They keep complaining to , asking why the United States is proceeding this way while ignoring China. My ears nearly rang from listening to them.”
I watched his banter in silence.
Perhaps sensing my sharp gaze, he cleared his throat once and continued.
“Charlie, instead of eting everyone separately and dragging out the negotiations, how about calling the chief representatives from China and Russia here and settling everything at once?”
“.......”
Settle it here? What was he thinking?
And did he even have the authority?
As if reading my thoughts, he spoke imdiately.
“Officially, I have no authority whatsoever in this negotiation. But matters like this are often resolved faster beneath the surface than at the negotiating table. That’s why I’m suggesting we gather informally and talk. I’ve already received unofficial negotiating authority from President Bush. I can assure you I’m more effective than the Christopher you were just talking to.”
Now that I thought about it, wasn’t he said to be the spiritual pillar of the neocons?
Could it be that the neocons were trying to flip the board?
“Did the neocons send you? To sabotage this negotiation?”
“What nonsense is that? The neocons sent ? Are you insulting right now?”
“Kissinger, I’ll be frank. You’re well known as a spiritual ntor to the neocons. How could I not be suspicious?”
Kissinger, who had stiffened for a mont, suddenly burst into loud laughter.
But it didn’t last long. Soon, he glared at with fierce eyes.
“Never insult again. I’m one of those who despise the neocons. You do know I’m Jewish, don’t you?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Do you also consider a war criminal?”
“I won’t deny it.”
When I answered firmly, Kissinger pressed his lips together, montarily speechless.
“Considering what you did in Latin Arica and Africa, that doesn’t seem like an excessive description.”
“That’s—”
“The biggest reason the United States is criticized today is that it shook hands even with dictators for its own benefit, and turned a blind eye to human rights abuses as long as a regi was pro-Arican. You’re the one who set that course, aren’t you?”
“I admit it. But at the ti, there was no other choice. Could we really allow communist regis to run rampant in Arica’s backyard?”
If a communist revolution broke out on the Arican continent, the United States would do whatever it took to overthrow that regi.
The fear that Latin Arica falling under Soviet influence could lead to attacks on the U.S. mainland drove Arican leaders to make such choices.
Most of those efforts succeeded, and as a result, more dictatorships than democracies took hold in Latin Arica.
“I don’t want to argue over what history will judge. But what the neocons do and what you did are not fundantally different. The United States has no eternal enemies, nor eternal friends—only national interests. For Arica’s interests, you were willing to stop at nothing, weren’t you?”
After a brief silence, Kissinger nodded.
“That’s true. But don’t misunderstand . I believe peace can be achieved through mutual cooperation between states. That’s why I brought China to the negotiating table and led to U.S.–China summits. I’m different from the neocons. I despise those who insist Arican values are supre and prioritize the use of force over dialogue to enforce them.”
Self-loathing? When negotiations fail, both sides resort to any ans necessary anyway.
I didn’t see much difference, but I didn’t bother pressing the point.
“The neocons have all withdrawn from this negotiation. They don’t welco changes in North Korea. That’s why President Bush is proceeding with this matter without them. So don’t worry about the neocons.”
If the hardline neocons were out of the picture......
My answer was simple.
“Alright. Let’s do it.”
“Good. You call the Russian chief representative. I’ll call the Chinese one. How about tonight?”
“Just the three countries—China, Russia, and the United States—eting to negotiate?”
Kissinger nodded, as if asking who else would be needed.
“South Korea and North Korea don’t belong at this table, do they? They should focus on the inter-Korean summit.”
“That may be so, but is it really acceptable to do this without the parties directly involved?”
“Don’t play coy in front of . I know you can move the South Korean governnt and Jang Songthaek if you want to. And in this negotiation, aren’t the South and the North more desperate than the United States? We can reach an agreent among ourselves first, then finalize things with them separately.”
It ant the great powers would reach an agreent and then notify South Korea and North Korea.
I didn’t like it, but it couldn’t be helped. There was no reason to take the long road when an easier one existed.
“Very well. Let’s gather tonight at the place where I’m staying.”
“Your lodging?”
“Yes. I think that would be best for conducting secret negotiations.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare accordingly.”
Kissinger stood up first.
“Then let’s et tonight and talk in more detail. About you as well.”
After exchanging farewells, Kissinger turned and left. He had to be over seventy, yet his posture was straight and his stride steady—quite impressive.
Once he was out of sight, I picked up the phone and called Moscow.
Ti passed, and night fell.
Kissinger and Christopher arrived first, and we waited for the others while drinking coffee.
A short while later, the chief representatives from China and Russia entered together, as if they’d t outside.
“I’m Li Zhaoxing.”
China’s Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing introduced himself.
“I’m Sergei Lavrov.”
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister followed with his greeting.
“Nice to et you. I’m Kim Muhyuk.”
I shook hands with each of them and guided them to their seats.
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