Inside the White House: The Future of US-DPRK Policy

For the incoming Trump administration, the challenges posed by North Korea are enormous. Pyongyang already has the capability to strike its neighbors with nuclear warheads - and in a few years will be able to hit the United States. Before the US presidential election the prospect was for a sharp increase in tensions and a major confrontation, perhaps actual war. Trump’s victory provides breathing space and a chance to rethink American policy along more realistic lines - freezing North Korea’s strategic programs, reducing tensions on the peninsula, and expanding US-DPRK and inter- Korean contacts. Seoul also has an opportunity to reformulate its unification policy and make a greater contribution to the alliance.