Nuclear North Korea: A Debate on Engagement Strategies / Edition 1

by Victor Cha, David Kang

Overview

The regime of Kim Jong-Il has been called "mad," "rogue," even, by the Wall Street Journal, the equivalent of an "unreformed serial killer." Yet, despite the avalanche of television and print coverage of the Pyongyang government's violation of nuclear nonproliferation agreements and existing scholarly literature on North Korean policy and security, this critical issue remains mired in political punditry and often misleading sound bites. Victor Cha and David Kang step back from the daily newspaper coverage and cable news commentary and offer a reasoned, rational, and logical debate on the nature of the North Korean regime.

Coming to the issues from different perspectives—Kang believes the threat posed by Pyongyang has been inflated and endorses a more open approach, while Cha is more skeptical and advocates harsher measures—the authors together have written an essential work of clear-eyed reflection and authoritative analysis. They refute a number of misconceptions and challenge much faulty thinking that surrounds the discussion of North Korea, particularly the idea that North Korea is an irrational nation. Cha and Kang contend that however provocative, even deplorable, the Pyongyang government's behavior may at times be, it is not incomprehensible or incoherent. Neither is it "suicidal," they argue, although crisis conditions could escalate to a degree that provokes the North Korean regime to "lash out" as the best and only policy, the unintended consequence of which are suicide and/or collapse. Further, the authors seek to fill the current scholarly and policy gap with a vision for a U.S.-South Korea alliance that is not simply premised on a North Korean threat, not simply derivative of Japan, and not eternally based on an older, "Korean War generation" of supporters.

This book uncovers the inherent logic of the politics of the Korean peninsula, presenting an indispensable context for a new policy of engagement. In an intelligent and trenchant debate, the authors look at the implications of a nuclear North Korea for East Asia and U.S. homeland security, rigorously assessing historical and current U.S. policy, and provide a workable framework for constructive policy that should be followed by the United States, Japan, and South Korea if engagement fails to stop North Korean nuclear proliferation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231131292
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	04/26/2005
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	280
Product dimensions:	4.75(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Victor D. Cha is associate professor of government and D. S. Song–Korea Foundation Chair, Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He is the author of Alignment Despite Antagonism: The United States-Korea-Japan Security Triangle, which won the 2000 Ohira Book Prize. David C. Kang is an associate professor in the department of government and an adjunct associate professor at the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College. He is the author of Crony Capitalism: Corruption and Development in Korea and the Philippines.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	ix
	Introduction: The Debate Over North Korea	1
1	Weak but Still Threatening	13
2	Threatening, but Deterrence Works	41
3	Response: Why We Must Pursue "Hawk Engagement"	70
4	Response: Why Are We Afraid of Engagement?	101
5	Hyperbole Dominates: The 2003 Nuclear Crisis	128
6	Beyond Hyperbole, Toward a Strategy	161
	Notes	187
	Bibliography	227
	Index	251

What People are Saying About This

Fareed Zakaria

This book is invaluable in thinking through the costs and benefits of engagement or containment. It is intelligent, well-researched, and presents both sides of the argument fairly. In other words, it is unusual in the world of policy.

— Fareed Zakaria, Columnist, Newsweek

Richard V. Allen

Nuclear North Korea is a straightforward assessment, balanced and thorough, and filled with vital facts. This is an important addition to scholarship and to the policy making community. The authors, fully versed in both the literature and the culture of the topic, make a valuable contribution to understanding how we must deal with our longest running and now escalating nuclear nightmare problem.

— Richard V. Allen, National Security Advisor to President Reagan and Senior Fellow, The Hoover Institution

Ashton Carter

Nuclear North Korea, written in a smooth and lucid style, is the most thoughtful and analytical treatment of practical strategies for dealing with North Korea that exists in print.

— Ashton Carter, Harvard University

Richard K. Betts

North Korea's nuclear capability may pose the greatest current danger for U.S. security policy. Yet almost none of the strategists addressing the problem are genuine experts on Korea, and while punditry on the issue abounds, hardly any scholars have applied rigorous academic analysis to the task of policy recommendations. This serious but clearheaded book does much to fill in both glaring gaps. Cha and Kang provide a model example of how to apply expertise to policy debate in a timely, readable, and thoughtful way.

Editorial Reviews

It is a slow and thoughtful read, navigating past the existing U.S. policymaking, the current media hyperboles, and the politically motivated punditry.

Korean Quarterly - Bill Drucker

This timely and important book is free of much of the hyperbole that has fettered a more concise course of action for dealing with North Korea. The book not only fills the current scholarly and policy gap with a clear-cut analysis of the policy challenges facing the United States and its allies, but also offers a thorough and provocative assessment for what policies to pursue.

Korea Times

Nuclear North Korea provides a penetrating analysis of what is probably the world's most dangerous trouble spot.

Asian Review of Books - Gordon G. Chang

[Nuclear North Korea] aims to shed fresh light on two of our biggest areas of ignorance: what motivates Pyongyang's extreme hostility to the outside world, and how best to part it from its claimed nuclear 'deterrent'... Msssrs Cha and Kang debate tough versus tender engagement in alternating chapters.

Economist

Nuclear North Korea provides a penetrating analysis of what is probably the world's most dangerous trouble spot.

— Gordon G. Chang

Asian Review of Books

While both authors believe that engagement represents the only rational policy for the United States, they arrive at this conclusion along very different paths. In individually authored alternating chapters Cha and Kang offer differing assessments of the threat posed by the DPRK and the extent to which Pyongyang can be induced to join respectable international society. In the process, they explicitly take issue with each other and engage in something of a public debate on the merits, requirements, and prospects of engagement.

— Robert M. Hathaway

World Policy Journal

It is a slow and thoughtful read, navigating past the existing U.S. policymaking, the current media hyperboles, and the politically motivated punditry.

— Bill Drucker

Korean Quarterly

Victor Cha and David Kang have joined forces to bring us a remarkable and sound presentation of two different strategies on how to deal with a nuclear North Korea. One of the most valuable aspects of their book lies in its composition — a running dialogue and critique of each other's strategy, presented in alternating chapters and culminating in a combined effort in the last two chapters of the book. The refreshing and honest internal evaluation that accompanies solid academic writing makes this work stand out.

— Charles L. Pritchard

Survival

This book is good and extraordinary. It is a delight to read.

— Ruediger Frank

Pacific Affairs

[T]his book is required reading for anyone who wants a deeper appreciation of what is surely one of the most pressing issues in the post-September 11 world.

— Nicholas Khoo

International Affairs

Their book is important. Dealing with North Korea will be one of the central challenges for the U.S. in the coming years.

— Nicholas Kristof

New York Review of Books

Cha and Kang wrestle with that policy context in their crisp, smart book.

— Michael O'Hanlon

Chronicle of Higher Education

Their book is important. Dealing with North Korea will be one of the central challenges for the U.S. in the coming years.

New York Review of Books - Nicholas Kristof

This book is good and extraordinary. It is a delight to read.

Pacific Affairs - Ruediger Frank

A delight to read.

Pacific Affairs - Rüdiger Frank

Cha and Kang wrestle with that policy context in their crisp, smart book.

Chronicle of Higher Education - Michael O'Hanlon

This volume is an indispensable tool not only for all those working in the field of Korean Studies but also for all those dealing with International Relations theory.

International Spectator

Victor Cha and David Kang have joined forces to bring us a remarkable and sound presentation of two different strategies on how to deal with a nuclear North Korea. One of the most valuable aspects of their book lies in its composition— a running dialogue and critique of each other's strategy, presented in alternating chapters and culminating in a combined effort in the last two chapters of the book. The refreshing and honest internal evaluation that accompanies solid academic writing makes this work stand out.

Survival - Charles L. Pritchard

[A] crisp, smart book.

Chronicle of Higher Education - Michael O’Hanlon

[T]his book is required reading for anyone who wants a deeper appreciation of what is surely one of the most pressing issues in the post-September 11 world.

International Affairs - Nicholas Khoo

The intrinsic value of the book lies not only in the deep theoretical and factual analysis of the North Korean system, the regime’s intentions and the confrontation between Pyongyang and the international community, but also – and above all – in the outstanding debate between two different points of view on the same topic. This volume is an indispensable tool not only for all those working in the field of Korean Studies but also for all those dealing with International Relations theory.

The International Spectator

Victor D. Cha and David C. Kang take a step away from emotion-laden debates about North Korea to offer a cool-headed, reasoned, and rational debate on the nature of the North Korean threat and the best policies for dealing with it.

Journal of Asian Studies

While both authors believe that engagement represents the only rational policy for the United States, they arrive at this conclusion along very different paths. In individually authored alternating chapters Cha and Kang offer differing assessments of the threat posed by the DPRK and the extent to which Pyongyang can be induced to join respectable international society. In the process, they explicitly take issue with each other and engage in something of a public debate on the merits, requirements, and prospects of engagement.

World Policy Journal - Robert M. Hathaway

[Nuclear North Korea] aims to shed fresh light on two of our biggest areas of ignorance: what motivates Pyongyang's extreme hostility to the outside world, and how best to part it from its claimed nuclear 'deterrent'... Msssrs Cha and Kang debate tough versus tender engagement in alternating chapters.

Economist

[Cha and Kang’s] contribution is important for its frank discussion of the possibility of a nuclear attack and their presentation of potential courses of action.

The New York Times - Concepción De León

[A] crisp, smart book.

Chronicle of Higher Education - Michael O’Hanlon

A delight to read.

Pacific Affairs - Rüdiger Frank

[Cha and Kang’s] contribution is important for its frank discussion of the possibility of a nuclear attack and their presentation of potential courses of action.

The New York Times - Concepción De León

[Cha and Kang’s] contribution is important for its frank discussion of the possibility of a nuclear attack and their presentation of potential courses of action.

New York Times