POLS 2100- Relations between the United States and North Korea

Relations between the United States and North Korea

Tia Cameron

POLS 2100
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Relations Between the United States and North Korea

Relations between North Korea and the United States have always been unsteady,

however ever since the signing of the joint statement, things are starting to look up. The path to

peace with North Korea is slowly making progress.

After WWII, Korea was split into parts at the 38th parallel which put the communists in

the north and conservative nationalists in the south. After not being able to unify the country, two

different countries were created: North Korea and South Korea. After the Korean War, a peace

treaty had never been signed, leaving the two countries to live in tension. The United States tried

on multiple occasions to denuclearize North Korea, but none have been successful until the

meeting happened in June 2018 in Singapore (North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un, 2018).

The Joint agreement signed on June 12th, 2018 involves agreements along the terms of

denuclearization, security, and a regime of peace (Joint Statement, n.d). Trump is the first sitting

president to meet with a North Korean leader. There are more negotiations along the way, but for

now, the government is focusing on the goals mentioned in the joint statement. Along with the

President’s meeting with Kim Jong un, the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in and Kim Jung

Un met between September 18-20 to discuss the denuclearization agenda and they hope to

denuclearize North Korea by Trump’s first term (North Korean, 2018).

North Korea takes pride in showing off their military might by hosting military parades.

North Korea is not included in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons, yet

intelligence reveals that they are in possession of nuclear weapons (​Nuclear Non-Proliferation

Treaty, n.d)​. It is problems like this that cause tensions to rise. The official ideology of North

Korea is Juche, which supports the idea that North Korea is independent and must be ruled by a
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divine leader. North Korea has been led by the Kim family for three generations (​Beauchamp,

2018)​. However, behind the show of strength, lies many issues such as famine and a dictatorial

government. (Blakemore, 2017). The U.S. has provided aid to North Korea in the past by request

of North Korean officials. NGOs have also lent their support in helping reduce the spread of

diseases and to help with the agricultural situation. This then weakens their ideology of Juche

because they cannot be entirely independent if other states have to assist them (North Korea,

2018).

Constructivism best describes the relations between the U.S. and North Korea.

Constructivists believe that a state’s decisions are based on how they want to view their societal

norms (C, 2015). Constructivists also believe that land, money, and weapons influence the

political landscape, but are not as important as the goals states have. These goals are ideas, which

can change and thus ideas are a key part of constructivist theory. The United States prefers that

fewer states in the world have access to nuclear weapons and nuclear armed countries that are

not in the treaty are seen as a threat. However, not all nuclear armed states are a threat. For

example, even though the United Kingdom has a larger military presence, and also in possession

of nuclear weapons, the United States is more concerned about North Korea because the United

States is allied with the United Kingdom and not North Korea (Pevehouse & Goldstein, 2017,

pp.92-95). For years, the United States has been trying to denuclearize North Korea and the joint

statement may finally make that a reality if North Korea is willing to cooperate (North Korea,

2018). These ideas are also subject to change. For example, before the Singapore summit, North

Korea was seen as an ultimate threat, but there is progress in negotiating with North Korea, the
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hostility has lowered and there is hope of having peace with North Korea (Pevehouse &

Goldstein, 2017, pp. 92-95).

In order to carry out the goals mentioned in the joint statement, social/political change

within North Korea will have to happen. While the meeting in Singapore was a good start, North

Korea will have to gain the trust of multiple countries by first denuclearizing their country. The

possession of nuclear weapons and the threats of war are what caused the tension in the past. The

United States will continue to work together with North Korea, but the goals will only become

reality if both parties participate.

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References

Beauchamp, Z. (2018, June 18). Why North Korea claims to have cured AIDS and invented the

hamburger. Retrieved October 25, 2018, from

https://www.vox.com/world/2018/6/18/17441296/north-korea-propaganda-ideology-juch

Blakemore, E. (2017, November 15). North Korea's Devastating Famine. Retrieved October 25,

2018, from ​https://www.history.com/news/north-koreas-devastating-famine

C. (2015, February 21). Constructivism and North Korea. Retrieved October 25, 2018, from

https://knowingnorthkorea.wordpress.com/2015/02/21/constructivism-and-north-korea/

“North Korean leader Kim Jong Un”. (2018, September 06). North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

wants to denuclearize during Trump's first term: Seoul officials. Retrieved October 25,

2018, from

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/06/north-koreas-kim-jong-un-wants-to-denuclearize-by-tr

umps-first-term.html

Joint Statement of President Donald J. Trump of the United States of America and Chairman

Kim Jong Un of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea at the Singapore Summit.

(n.d.). Retrieved October 25, 2018, from

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/joint-statement-president-donald-j-tru

mp-united-states-america-chairman-kim-jong-un-democratic-peoples-republic-korea-sing

apore-summit/

North Korea. (2018, July 17). Retrieved October 25, 2018, from

https://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2792.htm
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Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). (n.d.). Retrieved October 25, 2018, from

https://www.state.gov/t/isn/trty/16281.htm

Pevehouse, J. C., & Goldstein, J. S. (2017). ​International relations: Brief seventh edition​(7th

ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.