hankyoreh

A Mar. 1 Wall Street Journal report

The North Korean strategies that are being reviewed internally by the White House include the possibility of regime change and the use of military force to weaken the North Korean nuclear threat, the Wall Street Journal reported on Mar. 1, quoting a source who is familiar with the review.

According to the newspaper, Deputy National Security Advisor Kathleen McFarland held a meeting of national security officials across the government about two weeks ago and asked them for a variety of North Korean strategy proposals, including ideas that were outside of the mainstream. McFarland instructed officials to put all options on the table, from acknowledging North Korea as a nuclear armed state to taking military action against the North. These instructions mean that the Trump administration is comprehensively reconsidering every aspect of the US’s North Korean policy, the newspaper explained.

As requested, national security officials submitted the reports containing opinions and proposals for North Korean policy to McFarland on Feb. 28, and these options, after being reviewed, will be reported to Donald Trump.

At the time of the summit between Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, American officials said on several occasions that “all options” were being considered for responding to North Korea, and the Japanese took this to mean that a “preemptive strike” on North Korea was among the military options available if signs are detected that the North is preparing to test launch an ICBM, the newspaper also said.

It’s true that North Korea’s launch of a ballistic missile and the killing of Kim Jong-nam with the VX nerve agent have contributed to a hawkish attitude toward the North. Even so, a diplomatic source said, “Chances are extremely low that the Trump administration will choose an extreme option such as military action or regime change.” The reason that military action against North Korea is being mentioned anyway, the newspaper concluded, is because of the calculation that China’s concerns about instability on the Korean Peninsula could be exploited to pressure it into cutting off the lifeline to North Korea. But since China is fully aware of the US’s intentions, this could only provoke a backlash from China.

Furthermore, even Washington hardliners against North Korea concede that a preemptive strike is not a feasible option. When the US considered a preemptive strike in 1994, North Korea’s only nuclear facility was at Yongbyon, but now it possesses enough fissile material to create at least 20 nuclear weapons, and the US and South Korean intelligence officials have not determined the concealed locations. North Korea’s use of solid fuel in its ballistic missiles has also made it easier to carry out a surprise launch.

By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]