May 17, 2018
President Trump’s Strategy and Style Better for North Korea Than Iran
American presidents have long found double-trouble in managing Iran and North Korea. The two countries are separated by four thousand miles and starkly different histories, but they share similarly antagonistic relationships with the United States, made only more tense by nuclear threats. For U.S. decisionmakers, North Korea and Iran pose the same broad foreign-policy challenge: how to manage down the risks with acceptable concessions.
In the span of a month, President Donald Trump faces crucial opportunities to respond to this challenge with both countries, first in his Iran nuclear-deal decision earlier this month and then in his meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un on June 12. So far, Trump’s penchant for throwing away convention shows promise for one of these cases (North Korea) but portends disaster for the other (Iran).
Trump explicitly connected his recent decision to pull out of the Iran deal to his upcoming meeting with Kim. Exiting the “disastrous” Iran deal, Trumpdeclared at the White House, “sends a critical message”—that “the United States no longer makes empty threats.” Trump was quick to add that the decision also spoke to his own character: “When I make promises, I keep them,” he said. “In fact, at this very moment, Secretary Pompeo is on his way to North Korea in preparation for my upcoming meeting with Kim Jong-un. . . . Hopefully, a deal will happen, and with the help of China, South Korea, and Japan, a future of great prosperity and security can be achieved for everyone.
Read the Full Article at The National Interest
More from CNAS
-
Navigating the Deepening Russia-China Partnership
Reports
In virtually every dimension of their relationship, cooperation between Beijing and Moscow has increased....
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & David Shullman
-
Harnessing Multilateralism for Digital Development
Commentary
Uneven access to digital technology is magnifying societal inequities around the world....
By Kristen A. Cordell & Kristine Lee
-
Washington should keep calm and watch the Australians
Commentary
At a moment of bitter division in the United States, Australia has produced a ray of bipartisan sunshine in Washington....
By Richard Fontaine
-
Sharper: 2020
Commentary
2020 featured an ever-evolving series of national security challenges....
By Sam Dorshimer, Nathalie Grogan, Emily Jin, Chris Estep & Cole Stevens
