North Korea has experienced extreme isolation from the world since Kim Il-Sung proclaimed himself as the Prime Minister in 1948, the same year South Korea declared statehood. Labeled by the international community as a totalitarian regime that oppresses its citizens, North Korea has long flouted international rules and norms, including human rights and nonproliferation under the Kim Jong-Il regime, the son of Kim Il-sung. But when Kim Jong-Il died in December 2011, his twenty-something son, Kim Jong-Un, took the reins. Since then, North Korea watchers have pointed to interesting changes in the country, though the significance and implications of these changes are difficult to discern.
Rand Paul (Still) Pushing for Pakistani Aid Cutoff, and It’s (Still) a Bad Idea
For several months now, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has been pushing for the United States to cut off foreign aid to Pakistan, which amounted to just over $2 billion in 2012. This week, as conservative Republicans propose a rethinking of aid to Egypt and Libya in the wake of anti-American attacks there, Paul is hoping to finally get a vote on his Pakistan proposal.
Top Republicans Call for an Accelerated Afghanistan Withdrawal
UPDATE (Friday, 9/21): Senator McCain later backed away from these initial remarks, releasing a statement on September 20 in which he explained: “I have said that no option should be taken off the table in such a discussion, including a more rapid withdrawal of U.S. troops. However, I continue to believe that would be the worst possible course of action.” Read the full statement here.
More Transparency and Dialogue Needed with China on Missile Defense
The debate on missile defense in the United States is sorely lacking in substance and has been overly politicized, especially recently given the hyper-partisan relationship between Congressional Republicans and President Obama. There is little discussion on the actual capabilities of current missile defense systems and the projected capabilities of future ones. We also haven’t paid enough attention to how others will react to a new strategic environment in which the United States has robust missile defense capabilities (or is perceived to).
Quote of the Day: The gift that keeps on not giving edition
The landmark civil nuclear agreement that the two countries signed in 2008 was supposed to lead to tens of billions of dollars in business for U.S. companies that build nuclear power plants. But it has not yielded anything except a disagreement over who would be liable in the event of a nuclear accident.
