Beware Kim Jong Un’s Divide and Conquer Tactics
Daniel Russel on NHK World
With a potential summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un approaching, ASPI Vice President of Security and Diplomacy Daniel Russel sat down with NHK World’s Aiko Doden on April 9, 2018, to talk about his expectations for the summit.
According to Russel, having two world leaders who aren’t accustomed to being told no, who don’t like to lose, and who both have nuclear weapons is “potentially a volatile combination.” The best case scenario is that the summit produces an agreement that will begin the negotiation process again.
However, Russel warns against returning to the old dynamic of three versus three with the United States, South Korea and Japan pushing for denuclearization while China and Russia are sticking up for North Korea. He describes this as “a recipe for impasse.” If Kim succeeds in his divide and conquer tactics, it will, as Russel sees it, be a big advantage for North Korea and a collective disadvantage for the rest of the world. (4 min., 21 sec.)