On June 15, 1994, Carter moved to North Korea, accompanied by his wife, Rosalyn, a small group of aides, and a television crew.
Meeting Kim was a moral dilemma for Carter.
“I have despised Kim Il Sung for 50 years. I was on a submarine in the Pacific during the Korean War, and a lot of my service mates died in that war, which I think he pushed unnecessarily,” he told PBS. .
“And so I had very serious doubts about him. But when I came, he treated me with great respect. He was obviously very grateful that I came.”
Over the course of several days, the Carters met with Kim, went on a sightseeing tour of Pyongyang and went on a cruise on a luxury yacht owned by Kim’s son, Kim Jong Il.
Carter discovered that his assumptions were correct: North Korea not only feared a US military strike on Yongbyon, but was also ready to mobilize.
“I specifically asked (Kim’s advisers) if they were planning to go to war. And they answered very specifically: “Yes, there were,” he said.
“North Korea could not accept the condemnation of their country and the embarrassment of their leader, and what they would respond.
“And I think that this small and self-sacrificing country and the deep religious commitment that you had, essentially, to their respected leader, their Great Leader as they called him, meant that they were willing to make any sacrifices of mass death on At midnight. Korea to preserve its integrity and its honor, which I think would be a terrible defeat.’
Carter presented a list of Washington’s demands, as well as his own proposals. These included the resumption of talks with the US, the start of direct peace talks with South Korea, a mutual withdrawal of armed forces, and US assistance in finding the remains of American soldiers buried on North Korean soil.
“He agreed with everybody. And so I found him very accommodating,” Carter said. “As far as I know then and now, he was completely truthful with me.”
Importantly, Carter brokered a deal that saw North Korea end its nuclear activities, allow IAEA inspectors to return to its reactors, and eventually dismantle the Yongbyon facilities. In return, the US and its allies will build light-water reactors in North Korea that can generate nuclear power but not weapons-grade material.
