US Policy Toward North Korea: Quo Vadis?

Abstract: As the Trump administration recalibrates America’s global priorities, containing Pyongyang should be at the top of its agenda. Despite the progress of North Korea’s illicit weapons programs, the United States should still pursue its longstanding goal of Complete, Verifiable, and Irreversible Denuclearization through diplomatic actions, such as coordination with democratic allies in Seoul and Tokyo, as well as with coercive tools, such as unilateral sanctions and the use of military force. In doing so, Washington should not neglect North Korea’s continuing and grave human rights abuses, which Pyongyang is still actively perpetrating against its own people, abetted by Beijing and Moscow. Finally, the United States must take concrete steps to counter the strategic collusion among autocratic regimes in China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea.