By Evan Moore
Two decades of engagement have gone nowhere with North Korea. It’s time to take steps to undermine the foundations of the regime itself.
In the wake of North Korea’s failed missile launch, Washington policymakers may be tempted to believe that the danger of a catastrophic breakout has passed, and that the United States can expect to return to relative quiet on the Korean Peninsula. This belief is deeply misguided and wrong. Indeed, satellite imagery has suggested that Pyongyang is preparing for a third nuclear test. Furthermore, the launch attempt has demonstrated that the regime is as dedicated as ever to expanding its ballistic missile capabilities – both to blackmail the international community, and to sell that technology off to its fellow rogue states. The United States and the free world must recognize that the core of this crisis is the nature of the North Korean regime, and adopt a multi-pronged strategy that will undermine the junta’s rule.
North Korea is the lynchpin of the global proliferation of nuclear and ballistic missile technology. The Hermit Kingdom has provided invaluable assistance to Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Meanwhile, the Syrian nuclear reactor at Dair Alzour was a mirror image of the North’s uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon. As the authoritarian state develops its capabilities, it soon disseminates that knowledge to the world’s rogue states. Therefore, the proliferation crisis in the Korean Peninsula is in large part the measure of the proliferation crisis throughout the world.
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