Prisoners of Geography 7 - Denuclearizing North Korea

            North Korea’s nuclear arsenals are a concern to the rest of the world, especially to China and the U.S. According to statistics from The Economist, a famous magazine about the world’s economy, as well as politics, every six weeks or so a new nuke appears in the stockpile of North Korea. Thus, stopping the constant growth of the number of warheads, along with gradually denuclearizing North Korea is of vital importance.

            Today, few ways exist to prevent a nuclear war started by a North Korean nuclear strike. One way might be to try to deter and contain Mr. Kim Jung-Un. The gist of this way is to let Mr. Kim understand that the U.S. or China are not going to preemptively begin a war, but North Korea’s expansion of their nuclear stockpile or launching a nuclear attack will be immediately matched. The U.S. and its allies should ramp up economic sanctions against North Korea and Chinese companies that trade with the country, as well as extending the U.S.’s nuclear guarantee to Japan and South Korea, two countries that are full in range of North Korea’s nukes. This way is more likely to succeed because Mr. Kim cares about his own skin. Mr. Kim enjoys life in a fancy palace while being regarded as a demigod. Mr. Kim must be unwilling to give up this kind of lifestyle and his power, but that will happen if he fires a nuke. Once Mr. Kim knows that nuclear weapons are unlikely to meet his goals and demands, he might think of destroying or bartering them in exchange for other more important interests, such as to try various ways to make North Korea wealthier and himself wealthier.

            The U.S. should also know that without China it can never solve the North Korean conundrum. On the one hand, the Trump administration should try to persuade China that in the long run, it will be better if China borders a united neighbor, rather than a poor and volatile one. Mr. Trump should also make it clear to Mr. Xi that freezing and eventually denuclearizing North Korea’s nuclear weapons and their weapons program is the U.S.’s goal, rather than changing the current regime in the North. On the other hand, China should agree to tougher measures on North Korea, such as limiting economic transactions and searching vessels for smuggling or contraband.

            After COVID-19 is successfully defeated, the North Korean economy will also feel the impact of the coronavirus. Being a relatively poor country, this new virus might slow down the speed at which North Korea develops their nuclear arsenal, which provides an excellent opportunity for world leaders to get moving and cooperate on a considerable scale to denuclearize North Korea.

  WORKS CITED

1. Staff of the Economist. "Handle with Extreme Care." The Economist, The Economist          ed., nos. Apr 22nd 2017, 22 Apr. 2017, p. 1. 

2. Staff of the Arms Control Association. "North Korea Denuclearization Digest." 
     Armscontrol.org, 30 Jan. 2020, www.armscontrol.org/blogs/

     north-korea-denuclearization-digest. Accessed 5 Apr. 2020.