Kaia Patterson
// U.S. must unite with other nations to address threat //
Recent ballistic missile tests by North Korea have heightened animosity and fear within the international community. Despite a declaration by the United Nations Security Council forbidding these tests, in the past few weeks, North Korea has continued them. Furthermore, as ballistic missiles become harder to detect and defend against, Kim Jong Un’s regime has shifted its focus to expanding its arsenal. In response to two ballistic missile tests on January 17, the United States, Japan, and South Korea issued statements not only emphasizing the threat of North Korean missiles but also the importance of sanctions on officials aiding North Korea in its missile production. North Korean representatives claim these missile tests are solely for defensive purposes. And despite President Biden’s willingness to negotiate, North Korea has effectively isolated itself from the global community. If the United States is to eventually establish a conflict-free relationship with the North Korean regime, in addition to increasing the number of economic sanctions on this country, the United States must also strengthen ties with its neighbors.
For any future success in negotiations with North Korea, the Biden administration should focus on bolstering its relationship with China. Labeled as North Korea’s “chief financial and political benefactor,” China “has a critical role to play in any diplomatic effort with Pyongyang,” explained Secretary of State Anthony J. Blinken. However, questions continue to arise over whether the United States can recruit Beijing to participate as an ally within these negotiations; in the past week, China has defended North Korea by delaying the United States and its allies’ effort to impose sanctions on five North Korean officials out of a need to spend “more time to study the sanctions.” Responding to this possible delay, a united front of seven UN Security Council members defended their decision, declaring “It is extremely important that Member States take the necessary steps to implement the sanctions in their jurisdictions, or risk providing a blank check for the North Korean regime to advance its weapons program.” Despite Beijing’s support of North Korea, however, there were initial hints of a strain in relations between the two nations in 2006 following China’s backing of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1718, imposing sanctions on the Republic as a result of a North Korean nuclear weapon test. Similarly, China backed the UN in November of 2017 following an additional missile launch test by North Korean officials. Less optimistic, Council on Foreign Relations journalist Eleanor Albert explained in 2019 that “China’s punitive steps have been somewhat restrained. While China has backed UN resolutions[…]it has withheld support until they were watered down.” In spite of these claims, due to China’s significant influence over North Korea and its economy, the United States and its allies must initiate more discussion with the country promptly to contain any possibility of dangerous North Korean military action.
Deep economic turmoil following its temporary collapse in trade with China, coupled with the threat of COVID-19, has led to one incentive for North Korea to open discussion in addition to dialogue with other nations. For, as South Korean president Moon Jae-in has continuously argued when questioned about North Korean relations, Kim Jong-un will give up his weapons to “focus on economic growth should Washington provide the right incentives.” The South Korean president continued by emphasizing the fact that “our experience in the past three years has proved that if North Korea is persistently engaged based on a close cooperation between South Korea and the United States, it is possible to resolve the nuclear problem.” Some analysts are reluctant to go along with this belief, claiming that South Korean negotiations “haven’t really gone anywhere.” In spite of these beliefs, North Korea’s recent loosening of restrictions, although confined “to high-level official trade,” can be considered one step closer to the end of complete international isolation within the regime. As long as the United States continues to maintain a unified front with regional allies concerned with North Korea’s dangerous nuclear program, peaceful dialogue with the Republic is a definite possibility.
Despite a widespread fear that North Korea will eventually gain the ability to strike the American homeland, many believe that North Korean threats are not only false, but also a mere scare-tactic used by a nation in a state of dire economic struggle. Some analysts even argue that Kim’s missile launches represent less of a direct threat and more that of pressure on the United States to make concessions. “This is a very effective way of saying, ‘We’re still in this game. We’re still advancing our capabilities,” explained S. Paul Choi, a former South Korean military official. Accordingly, as North Korean ballistic missile tests are not so much a direct threat as they are a tool used to merely intimidate other regional powers, Biden’s laid-back approach to North Korean ballistic missile tests is an understable and acceptable one.
North Korea currently faces a plethora of domestic issues. Along with problems stemming from a Chinese border closure aiming at stopping the spread of Covid-19, the nation has continued to struggle with mounting debt and isolation. Thus, to soften this debt while attempting to upkeep any form of an economic holding, North Korea has continued its use of a nuclear warfare program. In response to a series of missile launches in the recent weeks of late January, Biden not only imposed additional sanctions on North Korea in addition to calling on the United Nation Security Council to blacklist several North Korean individuals, but has also asked the regime to cooperate in international discussion on denuclearization. In many ways, Biden’s peaceful approach through his prioritization of negotiation responds quite effectively to North Korea’s threats. In spite of this approach, however, the North Korean administration has not made any excessive effort to officially communicate with the United States. Thus, pressure as a united front will prove integral to commencing open and effective negotiations that will diminish the power of a North Korean threat to the global community.
