North Korea denuclearization

Even as its nuclear capacity continues to advance, Pyongyang will keep its anti-nuclear doctrine in place – despite the growing contradiction.

The Yoon administration is trying to carry out a policy toward North Korea that has already been tried -- with no success.

South Korea’s policies toward Pyongyang differ less from administration to administration than is often assumed.

Calling Seoul’s offer “an absurd dream,” Kim Yo Jong derided the South Korean president with North Korean-style insults. 

Amid the stalled nuclear and inter-Korean dialogue, President Yoon Suk-yeol again repeated his pledge of economic rewards for denuclearization.

A mutually assured deterrence could be an alternative diplomatic strategy toward Pyongyang.

During his inauguration speech, South Korea’s new president floated the possibility of providing economic packages to Pyongyang in return for denuclearization.

Conservatives – including President-elect Yoon – argue that the initiative damaged the South Korea-U.S. alliance. But would South Korea really have been better off without President Moon’s peace process?

North Korea is not testing missiles in a bid to entice the U.S. into talks. Pyongyang is honing its missile arsenal as a goal in and of itself.

If North Korea conducted the recent missile tests in order to convince the U.S. to return to the negotiation table, Pyongyang should quickly change strategy.

Recent developments suggest North Korea is adopting its own version of “strategic patience”: ignoring diplomatic outreach until the situation turns in its favor.