AS Donald Trump never failed to make clear when he was still just a successful property mogul, his secret lay in always being prepared to walk away from a deal that was not right. His detractors insisted this was not the way that international politics could be conducted. Yet the new president’s approach has demonstrated merits. Most significantly he tore up the Obama nuclear deal with Iran, the pathetic legacy of a weak and failing president.

His “No More Mister Nice Guy” approach has naturally outraged the ayatollahs in Tehran and shocked America’s European allies. But the clear proof that the Obama Geneva deal was not worth the paper on which it was written has been demonstrated by Iran’s readiness to admit publicly that it has upped production of enriched uranium, an essential step in the production of nuclear weaponry. Had it been ready to stick honestly to its side of the bargain, it would have stayed with this program for the 15 years agreed in Geneva. As it was, it is now clear it never wound down its drive for these terrible armaments. Even the European states that were party to the deal are now protesting to Tehran. Whether they actually match words with deeds in the face of lost commercial opportunities in Iran is of course quite another matter.

Trump also told his NATO allies that he would tear up the defense organization’s founding North Atlantic Treaty if they did not fulfill their own commitments to spend at least two percent of their GDP on their military. That has concentrated minds in European chancellories, though how effectively still remains to be seen.

And now the US president is continuing his deal-making with Kim Jong-un, the ruthless dictator of North Korea. At their third face-to-face meeting on Sunday Trump walked with Kim to step over the truce line at Panmunjom into North Korea. He was accompanied by South Korean President Moon Jae-in who made a similar gesture in April 2018. The three leaders then had their first talks together which all sides described as positive. This fresh encounter came about after an exchange of letters between Trump and Kim. It has been reported that State Department officials were leaking there had been no behind-the-scenes preparation for the meet. So what did it really achieve apart from an agreement for officials to resume negotiations on the future of Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal?

When dictating his “Art of the Deal” book, Trump made no secret of the need to charm the people sitting on the other side of the table. There was no point going in hard from the get-go. The desired outcome had to be clear but it didn’t have to be reached immediately. Thumping the table could be a tactic to get competitors into the negotiations — Trump did this when he traded insults with “Little Rocket Man” Kim — and it could be used when the deal-making was stuck. But for the moment the president clearly thinks the time to charm with Kim has not yet come to an end. His many political enemies are predictably carping that he has crossed the line, and all for a photo opportunity. But Trump wants this deal. However, Kim would be foolish to have him walk away if it is not right.