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International relations with North Korea
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Once the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s the bipolar world order disintegrated with it, leaving the United States as the sole global superpower. Yet, the communism was not the only concern of Americans. In the early 1980s, this capitalist power already started sensing an overcoming threat of the international terrorism, which led to the emergence of a new group of enemies, namely, the rogue states. These countries are seen as a danger to the new unipolar world. The United States of America assumed a responsibility to contain these states and/or transform them into successfully functioning democracies. Currently this is being done by military interventions and sanctions. However, one special state arises – North Korea . It is the most aggressive of the group, but enjoys the most diplomatic approach. This paper’s aim is to understand why North Korea is receiving a different treatment compared to its comrade dictator states. This will be done as follows. Firstly, the definition(s) of the rogue states will be provided. Secondly, the critique of the American standpoint will be given. Finally, the reasons for the treatment of the DPRK will be addressed.
The term rogue states entered the global politics arena in early 1980s, when the US became concerned about the issues of international terrorism and the states sponsoring it (Mitchell 2). Right from the beginning the exact definition of the rogue states has been complex and shifting in accordance to the changes in the US foreign policies. Based on Anthony Lake these are “recalcitrant and outlaw states that not only choose to remain outside the family [of democratic nations] but also assault its basic values” (45). As argued by Professor Sara McLaughlin Mitchell the rogue sta...
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Howard, Peter. "Why Not Invade North Korea? Threats, Language Games, and U.S. Foreign Policy." International Studies Quarterly 48.4 (2004): 805-28. Web.
Huntington, Samuel P. "The Lonely Superpower." Foreign Affairs 78.2 (1999): 35-49. JSTOR. Web.
Griffiths, Martin, and Terry O'Callaghan. International Relations: The Key Concepts. London: Routledge, 2002. Print.
Lake, Anthony. "Confronting Backlash States." Foreign Affairs 73.2 (1994): 45-55. JSTOR. Web.
Mitchell, Sara McLaughlin, and Peter F. Trumbore. "Rogue States and Territorial Disputes." Conflict Management and Piece Science (2013): 1-17. Web.
Song, Sang-ho. "N.K. Artillery Strikes S. Korean Island." The Korea Herald. N.p., 23 Nov. 2010. Web. 03 Apr. 2014.
Smith, Derek Delbert. Deterring America: Rogue States and the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2006. Print.
Shiraev, Eric B., and Vladislav M. Zubok. International Relations. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.
方玥雯[Fang Yue Wen] (2009). 北韓核武研發與東北亞安全:2002-2007. [The North Korea’s Nuclear Weapons and the Security in Northeast Asia: 2002-2007] in台灣[Taiwan]: 國立政治大學[National Cheungchi University] Retrieved 18 July, 2013 from http://nccuir.lib.nccu.edu.tw/handle/140.119/37029
Rogue states under dictatorial rule threaten the fragile peace, which exists in our modern world. Constantly as a society Americans have always fought against these said foes. However all too often we pass a blind eye to the humanity of the enemies’ civilian populations. For more often than not, those who live within these systems are chronically oppressed. The nation of North Korea is no exception, with “Bing-brother always watching.” The government in North Korea pervades all aspects of life.
Wendt, Alexander. “Constructing International Politics.” International Security. Cambridge: President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1995. 71-81. Print.
Kim, Yǒng-jin (1973). Major Powers and Korea. Silver Spring, MD: Research Institute on Korean Affairs. 46.
Relations between the United States and North Korea have been unstable since the second world war and with each passing decade the relations have become more tense. The U.S has never have formal international relations with North Korea , however the conflict has caused much controversy in U.S foreign policy. North Korea has been the receiver of millions of dollars in U.S aid and the target of many U.S sanctions. This is due to the fact that North Korea is one of the most oppressive regimes on the planet, that uses unjust techniques such as murder, torture, and starvation to get their citizens to be obedient. They restrict contact from their citizens to the outside world, through censorship of technology and rarely allowing visitors to the country. The root of the US-North Korea conflict however ,has been on the basis of nuclear weapons and North Korea threatening to use those weapons against the U.S and neighboring South Korea. The U.S and other nations have been working for the last few decades to stop the regime from purchasing and utilizing destructive nuclear weapons.
The purpose of this essay is to inform on the similarities and differences between systemic and domestic causes of war. According to World Politics by Jeffry Frieden, David Lake, and Kenneth Schultz, systemic causes deal with states that are unitary actors and their interactions with one another. It can deal with a state’s position within international organizations and also their relationships with other states. In contract, domestic causes of war pertain specifically to what goes on internally and factors within a state that may lead to war. Wars that occur between two or more states due to systemic and domestic causes are referred to as interstate wars.
BUZAN, Barry: People, States & Fear: An Agenda for International Security Studies in the Post-Cold War Era (Harvester Wheatshef; 1991)
Since its origin in 1948, North Korea has been isolated and heavily armed, with hostile relations with South Korea and Western countries. It has developed a capability to produce short- and medium-range missiles, chemical weapons, and possibly biological and nuclear weapons. In December 2002, Pyongyang lifted the freeze on its plutonium-based nuclear weapons program and expelled IAEA inspectors who had been monitoring the freeze under the Agreed Framework of October 1994. As the Bush administration was arguing its case at the United Nations for disarming Iraq, the world has been hit with alarming news of a more menacing threat: North Korea has an advanced nuclear weapons program that, U.S. officials believe, has already produced one or two nuclear bombs. As the most recent standoff with North Korea over nuclear missile-testing approaches the decompression point, the United States needs to own up to a central truth: The region of Northeast Asia will never be fully secure until the communist dictatorship of North Korea passes from the scene. After threatening to test a new, long-range missile, Pyongyang says it is willing to negotiate with "the hostile nations" opposing it. But whether the North will actually forgo its test launch is anyone's guess. North Korea first became embroiled with nuclear politics during the Korean War. Although nuclear weapons were never used in Korea, American political leaders and military commanders threatened to use nuclear weapons to end the Korean War on terms favorable to the United States. In 1958, the United States deployed nuclear weapons to South Korea for the first time, and the weapons remained there until President George Bush ordered their withdrawal in 1991. North Korean government stateme...
I am pursuing a Master’s in International Affairs through American University’s Global Governance, Politics, and Security Program. My emphasis is on security risks that arise from great powers and non-state actors in the international system. To these ends, I have taken courses on great power politics, countering terrorism, insurgency/counterinsurgency, and intelligence in foreign policy. The takeaways
People’s ideas and assumptions about world politics shape and construct the theories that help explain world conflicts and events. These assumptions can be classified into various known theoretical perspectives; the most dominant is political realism. Political realism is the most common theoretical approach when it is in means of foreign policy and international issues. It is known as “realpolitik” and emphasis that the most important actor in global politics is the state, which pursues self-interests, security, and growing power (Ray and Kaarbo 3). Realists generally suggest that interstate cooperation is severely limited by each state’s need to guarantee its own security in a global condition of anarchy. Political realist view international politics as a struggle for power dominated by organized violence, “All history shows that nations active in international politics are continuously preparing for, actively involved in, or recovering from organized violence in the form of war” (Kegley 94). The downside of the political realist perspective is that their emphasis on power and self-interest is their skepticism regarding the relevance of ethical norms to relations among states.
Van Evera, Stephen, 1996 ‘Causes of War: Power and the Roots of Conflict’ Ithaca, NY: Cornell
Mingst, K. (2011). Essentials of international relations. (5th ed., p. 70-1). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company
Kim, Yongho and Yi, Yurim “Security Dilemmas and Signaling during the North Korean Nuclear Standoff”, Asian Perspective, Vol. 29, No. 3, 2005, pp. 73-97
The issue of security has long been the preoccupation of international relations. It has been argued that there is no common concept of security and disagreement in the normative and methodological approach. In the simplest form, the core of security is survival, and consequently a lack of threat. In terms of international relations, the state has been the main referent object of security. Arnold Wolfers proposed the definition of security as the "(security), in an objective sense, measures the absence of threats to acquired values, in a subjective sense, the absence of fear that such values will be attacked".” In the traditional approach, threats to security comes from a hard power source and is framed through a national security paradigm. It was argued that security is only concerned with power politics and military action. Proponents of the traditional approach argue that international relations is dominated by a realist perception. States are obliged by anarchy in international relations to follow a course of self-protection and face a security dilemma. External physical threats are the main source of insecurity for state. For traditionalists, protecting national boundaries and sovereignty is the central focus of security. In his seminal paper titled, “The Renaissance of Security Studies,” Stephen Walt argues that the domain of security studies is “the phenomenon of war.” For Walt, security is rightfully preoccupied with analyzing the impact of the use of force on individuals, societies, and the state. In this perspective military power was used as in instrument of foreign policy, political propaganda, and for economic aims. The former approach to security dominated the Cold War era. During this time, global military c...