“You have South Korea moving so quickly on these projects to push for reconciliation with North Korea, and in Washington you have people pushing for denuclearization before anything else happens,” said Jean H. Lee, director of the Wilson Center’s center for Korean history and public policy. “They have very different end games and very different time frames. It’s very problematic.”
Read MoreCNBC: The US is trying to nail down terms with Pyongyang, while 'South Koreans aren't wasting time' →
"The more protracted the U.S.-North Korean negotiations, the more potential for a gap between Washington and Seoul on North Korea policy as South Korea makes moves to lift its sanctions to allow for economic partnership.”
Read MoreWashington Post: Documentary shows Trump saluting North Korean general
Though only a brief interaction, it was telling that the salute was included in the documentary, according to Jean H. Lee, a North Korea scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.
“This is a moment that will be used over and over in North Korea’s propaganda as 'proof' that the American president defers to the North Korean military,” Lee said. “It will be treated as a military victory by the North Koreans.”
Read MoreNPR: What Daily Life In North Korea Looks Like
NPR's Audie Cornish talks with North Korea expert Jean Lee about what daily life is like in the country and how much the average person knows about the upcoming summit between President Trump and Kim Jong Un.
Read MoreCNN: Analysis: The moment the US treated North Korea "as an equal" →
No matter what comes next in the talks between Kim Jong Un and President Trump, their handshake will remain historic, Jean H. Lee, a North Korea expert at the US-based Wilson Center, told CNN.
"I’m really thinking about how this is going to play in Pyongyang because this is such a powerful moment for the North Korean people," she said.
Read More"It will be celebrated in North Korea as the moment the United States acknowledged and treated North Korea as an equal.”
Politico: Will Trump stand up for free press in Singapore? →
When President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, it will mark the coming together of perhaps the world’s most sealed-off and press-hostile autocrat with a president who frequently rages against the media, all in a country known for its repressive views on free speech.
Needless to say, journalists are concerned over what access will be granted at the historic meeting.
Read MoreCBS News' Face the Nation →
Jean Lee joins host Margaret Brennan and Sue Mi Terry of CSIS to discuss the latest on North Korea on Face the Nation.
Read MoreBBC: Kim Jong-un: The new kid on the diplomatic block →
Kim Jong-un has suddenly become the new popular leader in the political class of 2018.
After years in isolation, he has emerged as a powerful player. Leaders from China, Russia, Syria, South Korea and the US have all met or are due to meet Mr Kim this year.
Read MoreNPR Weekend Edition: Latest on the North Korea Summit →
NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro speaks to Korea expert Jean Lee of the Wilson Center about the latest on North Korea and a meeting between Kim Jong Un and President Trump.
Read MoreNPR: What To Know About North And South Korea's Leaders Ahead Of Their Summit →
NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Jean Lee, Director of the Center for Korean History and Public Policy at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. She talks about what is known about the leaders of both North and South Korea, and what this summit means for both of them.
Read MoreNPR: What To Expect From Friday's Summit Between North And South Korea →
There's reason for caution when it comes to expectations about North Korea, warns Jean Lee, director of the Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy at the Woodrow Wilson Center. Kim's understanding of "denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula — a key U.S. goal — may be very different from what President Trump expects, says Lee.
Read MoreAward-Winning Reporter Jean Lee to Lead Wilson Center’s Korea Studies →
WASHINGTON – Jean H. Lee will serve as the new Director of the Wilson Center’s Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy, drawing upon her unique experiences as a Pulitzer-Prize-nominated journalist and expert on South and North Korea.
Read MoreThe Diplomat: What Does a Trump-Kim Meeting Mean for China? →
“Kim Jong-un is making it clear that he is no one’s ‘little brother’ — certainly not China’s. He wants to sit at the table with the United States.”Read More
Washington Post: A North Korean propaganda film foretold proposed talks between Trump and Kim Jong Un →
The news that President Trump had accepted an offer to meet Kim Jong Un to talk about North Korean denuclearization took many people by surprise.
Thursday's announcement had come after nearly a year of rapidly increasing tension between the United States and North Korea, as Pyongyang made considerable leaps in its nuclear weapons program despite the Trump administration's “maximum pressure” strategy.
But this scenario may have been foretold. As Jeffrey Lewis, an expert on North Korea's nuclear program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey has noted, there was a preview of a similar line of events — in a North Korean propaganda film aired years ago.
Read MoreVICE News Tonight: Binge watching North Korean TV is surreal — and educational →
To understand more about what North Koreans are watching and what the government wants them to think, we arranged a screening with Jean Lee, who became an expert in North Korean television when she worked as a journalist in Pyongyang.
Read MoreVICE News Tonight (HBO): North Korean soap operas →
In order to learn more about Kim’s policy priorities and everyday life in the secretive kingdom, VICE News binges North Korean soaps with the Wilson Center’s Jean Lee.
Read MoreCNBC: North Korea is at the Olympics — but North Koreans probably won't get to see much of it
"The North Koreans won't have the same kind of access to the Olympics as we do. But if their athletes do well, they will certainly be celebrating it."
Read MoreVice News Tonight|HBO on Instagram →
NPR's All Things Considered: The Political Gamesmanship Behind The 2018 Winter Olympics →
Michel Martin asks North Korea expert Jean Lee, former Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert, and former COO for the U.S. Olympic Committee Lt. Gen. Wallace Gregson about behind-the-scenes diplomacy.
Read MoreFox News: North Korea pushing 'vanity projects' as Olympics near →
“As a young man in his mid-30s, Kim Jong Un must woo the next generation if he’s to rule for decades to come,” Lee told Fox News. “Sports and technology — two things all young people love — are part of that equation.”Read More
The FT’s review of The Lazarus Heist, the Peabody-nominated BBC World Service podcast.