For a successful summit, both sides need to put themselves in the other's shoes.

The US must address the root causes of the North Korean problem – its security paranoia – to make a successful nuclear deal.

Ahead of the Trump-Kim summit, there is disagreement between the two parties on how denuclearization should be carried out — in progressive phases, or in a complete and irreversible dismantling of the program. The Center for International Security and Cooperation released a proposal for a three-phase “roadmap” to denuclearization, advocating for a risk management approach to the denuclearization process.

While China may not have the power to bring North Korea and the United States together for talks, Beijing’s role in a lasting peace agreement cannot be understated. If President Trump is not attentive to China’s priorities on the Korean Peninsula, he will not get far with the North Korean regime in negotiations.

With North Korea enjoying an improvement in its international environment, especially warming relations with China, it feels that the time has come to push back against the US.

Cancelling the summit makes the US look unreasonable and gives the initiative to China.

As the more powerful of the two countries, it falls to the US to compromise so the summit can be a success.

In recent weeks, the world has witnessed what was thought to be virtually impossible. Not only a thawing of tensions between North and South Korea, but what seems to be a rapid move towards opening and rebuilding of diplomatic relations between the two.

The initial steps that Kim and Moon have taken are encouraging, and they provide the foundation for a lasting peace on the Peninsula. But they are just initial steps, and many thorny obstacles remain.

Trump spoke with Chinese President on Wednesday, with the two reiterating commitment to existing sanctions on North Korea even as a trade war brews between the two countries.