BOLTON COMMENTS ON S. KOREA IN HIS MEMOIR

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KBS has obtained the memoir of former White House national security adviser John Bolton. It contains a significant amount of information on the collapsed Hanoi Summit between Pyongyang and Washington back in February last year. Bolton's book says President Trump threatened he would withdraw U.S. troops unless Seoul pays five billion dollars for hosting them.

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At an extended meeting following one-on-one talks, Kim Jong-un said there wasn't enough time left.

[Soundbite] KIM JONG-UN(NORTH KOREAN LEADER(FEB. 28, 2019)) : "I'm asking you to give us more time to discuss this sufficiently. Every minute counts for us."

President Trump asked if there were any other propositions in addition to the scrapping of the Yongbyon nuclear facility, and insinuated to the North Korean leader that sanctions against Pyongyang could be eased partially. However, Kim turned down the offer. Instead, he provided a detailed explanation of the importance of the nuclear facility, according to Bolton's memoir. Trump also asked if ICBMs should be included in the denuclearization process. Bolton, who was seated next to the president at the time, replied that not only nuclear but biological weapons also had to be included. Kim Jong-un in response demanded a step-by-step approach and complained that North Korea had no legal guarantees to safeguard its security. During the talks, Trump asked Kim about calling off dinner and having him go back to his home country. The North Korean leader replied, smiling, that he couldn't do that. John Bolton writes in his book that Kim Jong-un "was smartly playing on Trump’s emotions," and demonstrated willingness to finish the negotiations. Bolton also says Trump ordered his administration to use North Korea's provocations in the defense sharing talks with Seoul. Upon receiving a report about Pyongyang's missile firing, Trump said "this is a good time to be asking for the money" adding Seoul will pay five billion dollars for hosting American troops. The U.S. president even told his officials to use the issue of troop withdrawal as leverage to make Seoul pay the demanded amount. Bolton says, "Because I feared Trump’s ultimate threat — withdrawing our troops from any country not paying what he deemed to be an adequate amount — was real in South Korea’s case, I tried to develop a strategy other than just refusing to do what Trump wanted."