North Korea’s Nuclear Decisions and Strategies Sovereignty, Legitimacy, and the Bomb

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Synopsis

This book provides a comprehensive analysis of North Korea’s nuclear strategies and of the decisions which explain its strategic motivations.The existence of two separate Koreas is an accepted outcome of the current international system. However, in today’s emerging multipolar order, the question of Korean legitimacy remains unresolved and South Korea finds itself surrounded by three nuclear powers— China, Russia, and, de facto, North Korea. This book traces North Korea’s nuclear quest across three major epochs: the Cold War, the post-Cold War, and post- September 11 periods. Through these lenses, the book reveals the underlying drivers of North Korea’s nuclear decisions and strategies, providing evidence that North Korea’s nuclear weapons are not only intended to guarantee the survival of the Kim regime but also hold the key for Pyongyang to resolve the lingering question over Korean legitimacy. The book provides evidence, through a longitudinal case study, that North Korea’s nuclear program provides a means to achieve full sovereign control of the Korean Peninsula by exploiting future opportunities in an increasingly multipolar international order.This book will be of interest to students in the fields of foreign policy, defense policy, nuclear proliferation, Korean Studies and International Relations.

Book details

Series:
Asian Security Studies
Author:
George A. Hutchinson
ISBN:
9781040153345
Related ISBNs:
9781040153376, 9781032732053, 9781003448877
Publisher:
Taylor & Francis
Pages:
N/A
Reading age:
Not specified
Includes images:
No
Date of addition:
2024-09-30
Usage restrictions:
Copyright
Copyright date:
2025
Copyright by:
N/A 
Adult content:
No
Language:
English
Categories:
History, Military, Nonfiction, Politics and Government