Donald Trump’s forthcoming trip to Seoul has drawn increasing attention and speculation from North Korea watchers in recent days. Despite at first only seeming to be a polite stop-off by Trump on his way home from the G20 in Osaka, the context in which his Seoul visit is now crystallizing appears increasingly notable.

Coming in the wake of Xi Jinping’s state visit to Pyongyang and an exchange of flowery letters with Kim Jong Un, Trump’s choice of accompanying senior officials and a probable itinerary visit to the DMZ has raised speculation that major North