North Korea: The Case for Offshore Balancing

Abstract

Past diplomatic efforts and sanctions have failed to prevent the North Koreans from continuing their nuclear and missile ambitions. If diplomacy is the preferred method to solving this strategic challenge, then a new and unconventional diplomatic approach is in order. In this paper, I argue that the removal of U.S. ground forces from South Korea could be the catalyst to compel North Korea to denuclearize through a grand bargain while still maintaining regional stability and security. To support this, this paper will build on the structural realist perspective for the causes of North Korea's nuclear ambition and further provide insight into why previous diplomatic efforts have failed to deliver results. Additionally, this paper expands the concepts of offshore balancing to support the theoretical possibility of removing permanent U.S. forces in South Korea while still providing regional stability and security in the region. Finally, a negotiation framework is presented to outline how this diplomatic solution could potentially be achieved.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 28, 2018
Accession Number
AD1098562

Entities

People

  • Eric A. Rant

Organizations

  • Air University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter WMD
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Business Administration
  • Commerce
  • Economic Sanctions
  • Foreign Relations
  • Governments
  • Korean War
  • Military Capabilities
  • National Security
  • Negotiations
  • North Korea
  • Northeast Asia
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Regional Security
  • Treaties
  • United States
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Asian Economic Studies
  • International Relations, focusing on Korea-Africa and North Korea-South Korea relations, and Nigeria-Latin American Relations.
  • Systems Analysis and Design