United States experts on Korea affairs have suggested that President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump narrow their differences on North Korea and build ties in the upcoming summit.

Ken Gause, a research analyst at CNA, a nonprofit research organization in the United States said that the relations between Seoul and Washington are at a critical point due to their new leaders’ different policies on Pyongyang.

Gause said that in order to maintain their alliance, Moon and Trump should put their heads together to decide on what issues they will focus on at the summit.

Robert Manning, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank, said that the summit is an important meeting that would define the relations of the two allies.

Regarding the issue of North Korean nuclear and missile threats, the experts called for solid cooperation between Seoul and Washington.

Gause said that the two allies should embrace both sanctions and dialogue to achieve the North’s denuclearization, which is not a means but a goal.

The experts expected that the deployment of a U.S. THAAD antimissile system will likely be a hot potato in the summit if it is discussed, while the bilateral free trade agreement is likely to be given little weight even if it is discussed.

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