UPDATE on Oct. 26 at 1545 KST: This story has been updated to include comments from the recent Oct. 22 presidential debate.

Earlier this year, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden stood on the stage of the Democratic debate in Iowa and declared that he would not meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “without any preconditions.”

“Look, we gave him everything he’s looking for,” Biden said. “The president showed up, met with him, gave him legitimacy, weakened the sanctions we have against him.” 

As the 2020 U.S. presidential elections draw near, the future of Washington-Pyongyang relations hang in the