The problem with North Korea
We are approaching the problem with North Korea all wrong. Don’t worry — this isn’t new. We’ve been incorrectly approaching North Korea for a long, long time.
The leadership in North Korea wants, more than anything, to ensure the survival of the regime. The key to understanding North Korea is, I think, remembering that they are all alone in this world these days — the demise of the Soviet Union has left them all alone. Gone is their sugar daddy, their sponsor. They have no one else.
With survival of their regime on their mind, they do a lot of things that seem pretty wacky to the West. They develop all kinds of crazy weapons, for sale to other, smaller countries around the world — artillery, rockets, missiles. They seek to reverse engineer just about anything they can get from the West, in order to counterfeit it and sell it. They duplicate out money. They do lots of things to get money, all these things to keep their heads above water.
North Korea sees the United States as the way out. Ironically, with the demise of the Soviet Union, they are looking to the United States for security and a commitment to the survival of their regime. Why the US? They don’t get along with China, must less trust them. Japan? They have bad blood going back a spell, to include the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula. North Korea and Russia really don’t get along, for reasons as diverse as history and differences in views in this post-Soviet world. And South Korea? The North looks forward to reunification — just not if it means the destruction of the North Korean regime
With that in mind, that the North Korean leadership is first and foremost focused on survival, it should be pretty easy to see how so much of what the US and others do puts us at odds with the North Korean leadership. We impose sanctions. We push for sanctions. We attack their economy — the world embargo, ten years ago, is said to have caused the starvation of millions in North Korea, without having any significant impact on the regime itself or their actions. More and more, we all work to cut them off from the world, in every way possible — which only serves to back them more and more into the corner.
Our efforts, the ever growing collective efforts to isolate North Korea and to change their actions through isolation, puts North Korea leadership and the survival of North Korea more and more in jeopardy. After North Korea’s test of their new nuclear weapon, Japan immediately cut off all economic ties. The US is now pushing for six way talks — in which North Korea sees no good, given they are looking not for regional security or a regional solution, but a direct answer from the US.
So, what is the right answer? Straight, bilateral talks between the US and North Korea. The US needs to come forward with a comprehensive plan for the economic, political and physical security of North Korea, with the right strings attached. IAEA inspectors of the North Korean nuclear program. Complete end to the North Korean nuclear weapons program. And a road map for reunion of the peninsula.
Stop pushing. Start pulling.