Negotiating with a Nuclear North Korea – a Failed International Response?

On Tuesday, 11 December, we staged our latest ISN-CSS roundtable discussion, which was entitled “Negotiating with a Nuclear North Korea – a Failed International Response?” The event, which we conducted in collaboration with the Indonesian Embassy in Bern, featured two speakers – Dr. Makmur Keliat, the Chairperson of the Center for East Asian Cooperation Studies at the University of Indonesia, and Dr. Simon Mason, who is a senior researcher at our own Center for Security Studies and also heads the Mediation Support Team there.

In the first video, Dr. Keliat reviews the sources of instability, both internal and external, that animate Pyongyang’s policies. He then discusses possible scenarios that could lead to regime change in North Korea and then concludes by assessing the tensions that exist between different ASEAN members towards the negotiating process.

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In the second video, Dr. Mason analyzes the negotiating process that has gone on between designated external actors and Pyongyang. He does this by first outlining a conceptual framework for negotiations and then applying it to this particular case. As a result of his analysis, Dr. Mason concludes that while the aims of all the parties are mutually compatible, their current strategies are not.

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Finally, in our third video, both speakers react to each other’s presentations and comments. One conclusion they make is that mainly due to inaction on Beijing’s part, the status quo on the Peninsula is likely to remain in place for the foreseeable future.

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For additional reading on this topic please see:

China Reveals its Hand on ASEAN in Phnom Penh

North Korea's Missing Man: The Post-Kim Jong-il Era Begins In Earnest

North Korea's Inept Move May Finally Try the Patience of China