This article discusses the revelation that Mike Pompeo, former CIA Director and current nominee for Secretary of State, visited North Korea earlier this month and met with Kim Jong Un.
The article goes on to discuss the possibility of later visits, including possibly President Trump meeting directly with Kim Jong Un. This is relevant to the class as it deals with the ways in which countries operating by two economic systems relate to each other, as well as the ways that the economy can become a weapon of diplomacy through sanctions. The amount of North Korea's GDP that goes into funding military research and testing also speaks to an economic system where military prowess is valued over production of consumer goods or basic agriculture, somewhat like the former Soviet Union.
5 comments:
I wonder how the sanctions will affect how North Korea obtains its raw materials. It looks as though China has disregarded some of these sanctions because they can corner the market, the market being North Korea, and make a profit.
It will be intriguing to see if any threats from North Korea formulate in the future. Given the fact they invest so much into military funding and research, they still seemed poised to act as a world threat. Hopefully, after meeting with US officials, the noise being emitted from North Korea can be tamed.
Even though the US is fundamentally different from North Korea, we still have the potential to assist them in transitioning their economy. The key to achieving this is to keep diplomacy on the table, as well as by using economic sanctions.
I'd be interested to see how and if North Korea's international relationships change after Kim Jong Un stated that they were going to put a pause on nuclear testing to focus on North Korea's economy instead. This was met with approval from USA too, however, just because they have paused testing does not mean that it will stay that way permanently.
The biggest question I have in regards to North Korea would be what the motivations of Kim Jong Un really are. For instance, recently in the news Kim Jong Un has been much more amenable to talks between South Korea and the United States. Is this sentiment used to gain some sort of power in the global sphere or has North Korea become more open to the idea of political peace and a reduction in their Nuclear arms. Only time will tell, however successful talks will benefit every party involved and may lead to positive ripples on the world stage.
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