By Li Hongmei
When the relationship of two countries ebbs at the lowest, people-to-people diplomacy would possibly be used to break the stalemate and curb the volatile situation from worsening off.
Flamboyant retired NBA star Dennis Rodman last week made a high-profile trip to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on its top leader Kim Jung Un's invitation.
Rodman, a colorful Hall of Famer who won NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls and at one time dated Madonna, again made a name having met Kim, with whom he watched a basketball game.
The visit by Rodman and members of the Harlem Globetrotters came at a time of heightened tensions between the United States and the DPRK, following Pyongyang's nuclear test last month, which sparked global condemnation.
Rodman's access to Kim raised more than a few eyebrows among Pyongyang watchers. It came as the UN Security Council is still in debate seeking punishment upon the DPRK for carrying out the February 12 nuclear test. The U.S, has been leading the chorus to further tighten sanctions upon Pyongyang.
On the flip side, the U.S. has never ceased its unilateral attempt to reach out to Pyongyang. According to a L.A. Times report.
A White House official made two secret visits in 2012 in an unsuccessful effort to improve relations after Kim Jong Un assumed power. The brief visits in April and August were aimed at encouraging the new leadership to moderate its foreign policy after the death of Kim's father, longtime autocrat Kim Jong Il, in December 2011, said the report.
Unfortunately, the DPRK's new leadership spurned Washington's outreach effort. Recently, and after a surge of fierce anti-U.S. rhetoric, Pyongyang defied international warnings and conducted its third and most powerful underground nuclear test.
This time, here comes Rodman, and not by accident, Kim Jong Un is reported to be a fan of basketball and the Chicago Bulls, with whom Rodman won three NBA titles.
Rodman has vowed eternal friendship with the leader Kim Jong Un during his visit to Pyongyang.
Although Rodman's Pyongyang visit has already spurred wild speculation worldwide--"basketball diplomacy" as hyped up, it is still far from mature to conclude that merely a good-will visit can somewhat ease up the spasm on the Korean Peninsula and send a message as assumed that the DPRK is opening up to the outside world, nor can we say the visit will usher in a brand-new relationship between Washington and Pyongyang.
