AFTER months when the pros-pect of a nuclear war on the Korean peninsula seemed all too real, it is a relief that America and North Korea may soon start talking to each other. A flurry of diplomacy has paved the way for negotiations. North Korean athletes and cheerleaders attended the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang; South Korean officials went to Pyongyang and met the North Korean dictator, Kim Jong Un. However, when Mr Kim suggested on March 6th that talks might lead to him giving up his nuclear weapons, diplomats were astonished. The Trump administration's policy towards North Korea of "maximum pressure and engagement" has been all about the pressure. Here, many feel, is a chance to try some engagement. That must be right. But past experience suggests that an ocean of scepticism is warranted (see Asia section). In the past North Korea has used nuclear talks to win concessions and money in return for commitments it has then broken. Mr Kim, who inherited his throne from his equally despotic father and grandfather, may also have inherited their duplicity.
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