"Disabling of N. Korea Nuclear Facilities Going Well"

News Item: "A senior U.S. envoy who spent this weekend in North Korea says authorities there are cooperating in the process of disabling the country's nuclear facilities."

Commentary: The senior US envoy is Sung Kim, the new director of the State Department's Office of Korean Affairs. Here, a Korean-American finds himself in the tug-of-war between the US and North Korea -- reflecting convoluted relations between Korea and the US. The fact that a diplomat led a team of American nuclear experts to North Korea suggests or foretells forthcoming rapproachement and normalization between Washington and Pyongyang, concurrent with the resolution of concerns over North Korea's nuclear program.