As usual, I copy and paste my essays on National Development Policy in the Asia-Pacific Region class, especially for the North Korean part. In early 2013, North Korea and Kim Jong Eun became a hot topic in international affairs. Here are some of my opinions on some issues in this country 
. Happy reading 
!
ESSAY ON NORTH KOREA ISSUES
In the early of 2013, again, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea) did a controversial and aggressive behavior by doing third nuclear test. The first and second tests were conducted in 2006 and 2009. In January 2013, North Korea announced that they would carry out a third high-level nuclear test and launch more long-range rocket that aimed at the US and US close allies in East Asia region such as South Korea and Japan. All these unfriendly behavior made North Korea or DPRK become isolated from international community with economic embargo and sanction, which impacted to its economy and created some serious domestic problem.
DPRK has been one of the world’s isolated countries and most secretive societies by the communist and dictatorship rule. DPRK face a dilemma because of its economy stagnancy, especially since the end of the Cold War. Its economy mostly came from agricultural sector that heavily dictated by weather. Floods and drought becomes the biggest enemy for this sector. Another one is manufacturing production, which is really dependent on electricity and oil supplies from foreign countries.
However, even though there are a lot of serious cases inside the country, DPRK stubbornness won’t stop. And surprisingly they still can “calm” with all the pressure from international world. What makes them still can survive?
In my opinion, the first reason why DPRK still can survive in its bad shape economy and unfriendly international community because of North Korea has nuclear and missile program as its bargaining power. Dick K. Nanto (2006) said that the North Korean leaders in Pyongyang have only limited options remaining as they have placed their nuclear weapons program on the bargaining table in exchange for economic assistance, security assurance, and normalization of relations with the United States, Japan, and South Korea.
The second reason is because DPRK’s economy is still heavily dependent on foreign assistance to handle starvation of the people. For covering up the domestic problem, DRPK has been using their bargaining power (that is nuclear program) for gaining more foreign aid. Nanto and Avery (2010) in their report mentioned that the country wants to join the club of nuclear and space powers and to be an Asian tiger economy. DPRK uses “charm offensive” that seems aimed at restoring inflows of economic assistance and trade flows. This “charm offensive” defined as specific actions to ease tensions with the United States and South Korea and appears to have reinvigorated its relationship with China.
Giving North Korean international assistance such as: food, energy and denuclearization assistance has always been a dilemmatic position for the donor, especially; the US, South Korea, China and Japan. From Manyin and Nikitin (2012) writings, it mentioned that between 1995 and 2008, the United States provided North Korea with over $1.3 billion in assistance: just over 50% for food aid and about 40% for energy assistance. But since early 2009, the United States has provided virtually no aid to North Korea.
North Korea has been suffering from chronic, massive food shortages since the mid-1990s where 40 percent of the population still suffers from malnutrition caused by the starvation. To fill those gaps, countries such as China, South Korea, and the United States and also the United Nations have been giving them food aid.
On February 29, 2012, after bilateral talks with the United States, North Korea announced a moratorium on long-range missile launches, nuclear tests, and nuclear activities (including uranium enrichment) at its Yongbyon nuclear facilities. In exchange, the US announced that they would provide North Korea with 240,000 metric tons of food aid but in condition that the food aid on progress in security and/or human rights matters; and linked the assistance to Pyongyang for easing its restrictions on monitoring (Manyin and Nikitin, 2012).
As for the energy assistance, between 1995 and 2009, the United States provided around $600 million in energy assistance to DPRK that was given to two time periods in 1995-2003 and in 2007-2009. In exchange, North Korea was being asked to freezing its plutonium-based nuclear facilities. However, when the assistance not provided anymore since year 2009, DPRK withdrew from the Six-Party Talks and Korea launched several long-range missile and ran a nuclear device test.
Kim Jong Un and Provocative Action
Since the death of Kim Jong-il in late 2011, Kim Jong Un, who are Kim Jong-il’s youngest son, continues his father position as the supreme leader of North Korea. He was titled as great successor and officially declared and the leader of DPRK on December 28th, 2011, as the following of the state funeral for his father. With this assignation, Kim Jong Un became the youngest leader and head of the state in the world (at 29-30 years of age).
In the end of January 2013, Kim issued orders for preparing for a new nuclear test and introduces martial law in North Korea. And on March 7, 2013, this young dictator announced threat for the US and its allies with pre-emptive nuclear attack like launching missiles and detonation of nuclear devices. Why he does these provocative activities?
To understand this issue, I’d like to analyze from level of analysis; individual level, domestic level and systemic level/ international system. Particularly for DPRK decision for nuclear program, I will take Kim Jong Un as the key actor on individual level as the decision maker.
As the successor of his father leadership, Kim Jong Un relatively still very young, new and inexperienced to lead North Korea. To gain more legacy and power, Kim needs to do some actions that can leads and helps him to be seen as “strong” leader with strong military tradition and dictatorship, as his father and grandfather did. Beside of that, he also wants to continue the personal philosophy of Juche, or self-reliance that was introduced by Kim Il-Sung, his grandfather. Not only Juche, he also continues the Kim’s dynastic policy of sending out mixed out signals to foreign countries (BBC News, 2013).
Kim’s lacked of military experience didn’t stop him for doing security threat to the regional. He got some back-up from his uncle, Jang Sung-taek, as the mentor, as well as support from DPRK’s military institution. With this nuclear missile launched, it also became a “show off” sign of North Korea military power.
Kim’s act also related to the domestic situation in North Korea. BBC wrote that in February 2012 Kim Jong Un agreed to suspend long-range missile tests in order to receive US food aid. It can be analyzed that nuclear launched become a cover for domestic problem inside North Korea; poverty, starvation, and bad economic condition. As mentioned in the beginning, North Korean economy is heavily dependent on foreign assistance. Here, DPRK as a state/ institution are failed to bring prosperity for its people.
And for the international system level, North Korea needs nuclear power as its bargaining power to the international world. At this level, which state aligns with which other states and which state negotiates with which other states. In other words, North Korea provoked the US and its allies, such as; South Korea and Japan. It also might be caused by the contested situation of East Asia, where Korean peninsula has been becoming the buffer zone for US-China influence. However, in this latest North Korean provocation, China seems dilemma. In one side, China is angry with North Korea behavior which disadvantage China for some reasons.
Many scholars and analyst said that North Korea’s act is not a real threat, since the quality of their military is far away from US and its allies’ military forces. But if the war could be happen for a real, it will cost a lot of human life (in both part of Korea, and the US). As well as it will destroy the stability of the region, and the most important thing is will brook Asia’s economy.
Kim’s Third Dynasty
There are several dependent factors for analyzing the Kim’s dynasty in the future. Will it be last long? In my opinion, unlike his father and grandfather, Kim Jong Un still young, inexperienced, and lacked of military experience. However, he got strong back up from the military institution and officer/ citizens that loyal to their leader and communist. So that, as long as Kim Jong Un is still have the support, Kim’s dynasty will still stand on.
The things that can make Kim’s dynasty end, is in the domestic level, for the example the revolution inside the country and willingness of the Korean people to reform. If the economic situation and the violation of human rights worsen, and more people starving into death, it might be bursting the anger of the civilian.
But, in my opinion, the strongest factor that can influence North Korean Kim’s dynasty is in international level, especially China’s policy and stakes. Ones says that one of way to prevent North Korea from getting nuclear weapons is to work with China to bring about the collapse of the North Korean regime and reunification of the two Koreas. But for China, it will be dilemmatic since there are fears that if the North Korean state collapsed, it would cause a flood of millions of hungry refugees into China. Furthermore, North Korea is useful buffer for separating U.S. troops from the Chinese border. So, in other means, it seems that still long way to go for Kim’s dynasty end.
Reference
- BBC News. (2013). North Korea Profile, BBC News Website, updated on April 9, 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15256929
- Nanto, Dick K. (2006). North Korea’s Economic Crisis, Reforms, and Policy Implications in Kihl, Young Whan and Kim, Hong Nack (eds), North Korea; The Politics of Regime Survival. M.E. Sharpe, Inc; New York.
- Nanto, Dick K and Avery, Emma Chanlett. (2010). North Korea: Economic Leverage and Policy Analysis. Congressional Research Service, January 22, 2010. Retrieved from: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL32493.pdf
- Manyin, Mark E. and Nikitin, Mary Beth. (2012). Foreign Assistance to North Korea. Congressional Research Service, April 26, 2012. Retrieved from: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40095.pdf
