North Korea and the politics of engagement

Abstract

In its policy toward North Korea, the U.S. government has vacillated between extremes. During the early 1990s, the U.S nearly went to war with North Korea over its nuclear program. Then, after stepping away from the brink in 1994, U.S. policy swung to the side of engagement. As a result of the 1994 Agreed Framework, the Clinton administration embarked on the unprecedented program, partnered by Japan and South Korea, of building two nuclear energy plants in North Korea. In other words, the United States agreed to help rebuild the energy capabilities of a declared adversary.