President Donald Trump arrives to deliver his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday. AP-Yonhap

By Do Je-hae

U.S. President Donald Trump's State of the Union address has always captured the Korean media's attention due to its usual reference to North Korea. But the North was missing Feb. 4, while President Trump mentioned other diplomatic issues such as Iran and Venezuela.

The absence has led to questions about what it could possibly mean for the Korean Peninsula.

"In front of the very Congress that has been consumed with the impeachment debate, Trump claimed U.S. economic and military strength are unmatched in the world," Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha Woman's University, said. "He said his policies have allies contributing more and have put America's enemies on the run. But Trump made no mention of North Korea. This will leave observers in Asia asking about the future of U.S. policy on denuclearization."

Absence of outomes

There is diverse speculation on why Trump left out North Korea. Some experts say it has to do with the absence of tangible outcomes on its denuclearization despite his two summits with Kim.

"There was no way that he could claim the kind of successes that he once believed he had on North Korea and is confident he's had with Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Israel and Palestine," Donald Kirk, an analyst and author on Korean Peninsula issues, said.