It’s a wash, as I have said here several times.
It was a practice of the USSR to demand pre-conditions in order to have a meeting at all, insinuating that the West wanted meetings more that Russia did, and the West was willing to pay for it. North Korea has eschewed this attitude. One point for us.
North Korea has tried unsuccessfully for the last fifty years to get a one on one negotiation with the US but this ‘prestige’ was not bestowed by any US administration, ever. NK got it this time without surrendering up anything but a possible delay in doing what they want to do. One point for NK.
So, it’s a wash thus far. A hidden advantage for the US is that Trump is the only occupant in the White House there has even been with the demonstrated ability to pull this off. It will be interesting to watch.
The huge differences which exist now are: 1 NK soon can hit us with nuclear ICBM’s and 2 Trump is getting ready to hit them first. Both sides face a new urgency.
This development with NK is an example of a train of events, most of them covert, which defy inside-the-box analysis.