Victor Cha – 7.6.17
After North Korea’s ICBM test, China and Russia have called for the U.S. to pay for a freeze on North Korea’s missile testing by halting annual U.S.-ROK military exercises, removing THAAD missile defense from Korea, and presumably resuming heavy fuel oil shipments to compensate North Korea. Here is an alternative, bipartisan idea by former Obama and Bush administration officials that calls on China to stop freeriding and to start paying its fair share, rather than habitually placing the burden of negotiation on the U.S.
North Korea’s July 4 intercontinental ballistic missile test raises hard questions for the Trump administration: Is there any path forward that does not lead either to war or to living with a nuclear North Korea that can hit the continental United States? Can effective diplomacy prevent the “major, major conflict” that President Trump has talked about?
There is growing recognition that the old playbook won’t work. Reviving old agreements North Korea has already broken would be fruitless. The Chinese won’t deliver on meaningful pressure. And a military strike could lead to all-out war resulting in millions of casualties. We need to consider a new approach to diplomacy.
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