Introduction

ASIANPERSPECTIVE, Vol. 28, No. 4, 2004, pp. 5-11. INTRODUCTION John Feffer Profound asymmetries of power and perception haunt U.S. relations with both North and South Korea. Over the last four years, these power imbalances have worsened, leading to increased tensions among the three countries. An uneasy, eightyear truce over North Korea's nuclear ambitions ended in 2002, and the United States moved closer to a war footing. In South Korea, meanwhile, anger and resentment over an unequal part­ nership, combined with an ongoing U.S. reevaluation of its secu­ rity role on the peninsula, have put an enormous strain on a longstanding alliance. The victory of George W. Bush in the U.S. elections in 2004 suggests that unless the administration can be persuaded to alter its policies—by moderates within the Republican Party, allies in the region, or an energized and concerned U.S. elec­ torate—these power imbalances will degenerate into outright conflict. Even if the Bush administration has no plan to precipi­ tate conflict in East Asia, its policies may well have unintended consequences. Miscalculations could impel both the United States and North Korea toward a war that both sides acknowl­ edge would have catastrophic effects but that, because of the logic of military escalation, neither side can avert. War, however, is never inevitable. This special issue, an ini­ tiative of the Alliance of Scholars Concerned about Korea (see the Statement of the ASCK at the end of this issue), explores the downward spiral in U.S. relations with the Korean peninsula, provides analysis that runs counter to conventional interpreta- 6 John Feffer tions, and offers clear and balanced policy recommendations for remedying the crises. Korea and the World In 2000, the United States and North Korea seemed on the verge of detente. After North Korean Vice-Marshal Jo Myong Rok visited Washington to sign a joint communique with President Bill Clinton in October, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright made a reciprocal visit to Pyongyang. Clinton planned to follow up with the first ever visit of a sitting U.S. president to North Korea to conclude a deal on the country's missile program. The election of George W. Bush, however, spelled the end of U.S. attempts to engage North Korea. The administration failed to follow up on the potential missile deal and missed other opportunities to conduct negotiations with North Korea. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, these positions hardened. The administration declared North Korea part of the "axis of evil," identified it in the Nuclear Posture Review as a potential target of a first strike of nuclear weapons, and confronted Pyongyang over a secret uranium enrichment program in October 2002. In short, the administration traded in the Clinton policy of "carrots and sticks" for a golfer's approach that relies only on clubs of various sizes to address the North Korea problem. These shifts in U.S. policy toward the two Koreas have taken place against the backdrop of a radically reconfigured American foreign policy. Particularly after September 11, the Bush administration has broken with a "balance of power" tra­ dition to put greater emphasis on military force and unilateral pressure. In the 1990s, despite a commitment to sustaining the "unipolar moment" created by the collapse of the Soviet Union, Washington still accepted the global security architecture of the post-World War II era. Madeleine Albright declared the United States an "indispensable nation," but the Clinton administration still managed to maintain close relations with key allies in Europe and Asia, attempted to shape rather than shred multilateral institutions and treaties, and relied more on the "soft power" of economic and political influence than the "hard power" of the military. In contrast, the Bush administration has sought to Introduction 7 remake the global order in a way that upsets the balance of power in different parts of the world in favor of a strengthened and extended U.S. military dominance. Dramatic changes have also taken place in East Asia. Several factors have disrupted the traditional alignment of the postWorld War II period. North Korea's Taepodong rocket test of 1998 and disclosures of the kidnapping of Japanese citizens further frayed relations between these...