The Monarchical Model of North Korea and Its Implications

Even after two hereditary successions of power and what would appear to be preparations for a third, the question of whether North Korea should be considered a monarchy is yet to be recognized as an important one. Taking both North Korean realities and relevant political-scientific discussions of the institution of monarchy into account, this paper argues that North Korea should indeed be considered a monarchy. The monarchical model, if properly understood, may afford insight into the stability and longevity of the regime, suggest a different approach to nuclear negotiations, and produce less alarming assessments of the risk of conflict than those currently informed by the perception of a conventional personalist dictatorship.