The alliance between Seoul and Washington dates back to the opening days of the Cold War. Since the growth of Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions in the 1990s, the alliance has increasingly evolved to prioritize management of the North Korean nuclear threat. Different Korean and American administrations have tried strategies including bargaining, military threats, strategic patience and […]
Factsheets on North Korea
Fact Sheet: Nuclear Testing 101
Updated December 2024 What is a nuclear test? Nuclear tests are generally controlled explosions of nuclear devices, such as bombs or warheads. The tests are used to determine a device’s effectiveness, yield (amount of energy released during detonation) and explosive capability. There are four types of nuclear tests: Atmospheric tests occur in or above the […]
Fact Sheet: North Korea Sanctions
Updated May 2024 Since North Korea carried out its first nuclear weapon test in 2003, it has been the target of multiple sanctions regimes in an attempt to discourage its nuclear development. The UN and the United States, as well as the European Union, Japan, South Korea, and Australia, have sanctioned North Korea over the […]
Finding windows for cooperation amid rising nuclear threats
By Anna Kim Last Tuesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong threatened “dreadful attack” and “a miserable fate little short of destruction and ruin” for South Korea, warning that if the country “opts for military confrontation with us, our nuclear combat force will have to inevitably carry out its duty.” The comments were […]
Fact Sheet: North Korea’s Nuclear Inventory
Updated September 2022 North Korea’s nuclear weapons program has existed for decades in a self-described attempt to protect the regime from security threats posed by adversaries and proxies. Bilateral efforts between the United States and the DPRK under the Agreed Framework ultimately failed, and in 2003, North Korea officially withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). […]
