Ten years ago, in the summer of 1995, it was fashionable in Washington and Seoul to predict the imminent collapse of North Korea's political and economic systems, and even the state itself. While clearly an errant forecast, it is easy to see why pundits and analysts thought as they did. Kim Il-Sung had died. Kim's son and successor, Kim Jong-Il, was failing to lead just as the country suffered a massive agricultural failure. A nuclear-weapons dispute with the United States had forced a costly full-scale mobilization of the country's million-man army. It was likewise clear that North Korea's industry had shut down; night imagery of the peninsula showed, quite literally, that the lights were out in North Korea.

Ten years on, this volume aims to rectify misconceptions and increase collective understanding about North Korea. It is intended to present a snapshot of what is happening in North Korea now -- economically, politically, and socially. To be sure, much of the country remains in shadow, and there is much we still do not know. Moreover, issues of North Korean nonproliferation are so often binary that compromise becomes difficult, if not impossible.

The distinguished contributors -- specialists in politics, economics, human rights, and security -- advocate a subtler, more multidimensional approach to the North Korea problem. Offering cautionary perspective on this poorly understood place, they highlight recent positive developments and suggest solutions to seemingly intractable problems. Most attest that economics, commerce, and integration -- all arenas in which slow progress is being made -- may be the most powerful forces for change on the Korean peninsula. This timely book encourages thoughtful, pragmatic discussion about North Korea and seeks to light the road ahead, for the Korean Peninsula and beyond.

(This book is now out of print. You may download the full text here.)

Many similarities exist between America's alliances with Japan and South Korea. The United States provides a security guarantee to both countries, and maintains a military presence in each. Local ambivalence about these foreign troops has long been a staple of politics in both countries.

The two alliances are strategically connected. The United States would find it difficult to support its commitments to South Korea without access to bases in Japan. Japan would have trouble sustaining political support for US bases if it were America's only ally in the region. Trilateral security consultations among the United States, Japan, and South Korea enhance deterrence and generate diplomatic leverage with respect to North Korea.

The US-Japan and US-ROK alliances have yielded mutual benefits for over fifty years. Yet today, while US-Japan defense cooperation is flourishing, conflicting perceptions in Washington and Seoul of Kim Jong-il's North Korean regime--and how to deal with it--have generated deep concerns about the future of the US-ROK alliance. This has prompted officials on both sides to shift their attention from managing these defense partnerships to redefining their terms.

Armacost and Okimoto's provocative book examines this policy challenge. Substantial progress has been achieved in modernizing the US-Japan alliance. A shared US-ROK analysis of the North Korean challenge, and a common strategy for combating it, is now the urgent priority. Without it, the US-ROK alliance will not regain the relevance and promise that mark America's relationship with Japan. Given the stakes, Washington and Seoul must summon the political will to address current problems promptly and purposefully. Written by some of the most eminent scholars and practitioners in the field, the chapters in this timely volume offer thoughtful suggestions to help policymakers achieve this goal.

(This title is now out of print; four PDFs, arranged by section, may be downloaded at the links below.)

Introduction
Preface (Daniel I. Okimoto)
The Future of America’s Alliances in Northeast Asia (Michael H. Armacost)
America’s Asia Strategy during the Bush Administration (Kurt M. Campbell)  

Japan
The Japan-US Alliance in Evolution (Kuriyama Takakazu)
The Changing American Government Perspectives on the Missions and Strategic Focus of the US-Japan Alliance (Rust M. Deming)
Japanese Adjustments to the Security Alliance with the United States: Evolution of Policy on the Roles of the Self-Defense Force (Yamaguchi Noboru)
US-Japan Defense Cooperation: Can Japan Become the Great Britain of Asia?
Should It? (Ralph A. Cossa)
The Japan-US Alliance and Japanese Domestic Politics: Sources of Change, Prospects for the Future (Hiroshi Nakanishi)

Korea
Shaping Change and Cultivating Ideas in the US-ROK Alliance (Victor D. Cha)
The United States and South Korea: An Alliance Adrift (Donald P. Gregg)
Challenges for the ROK-US Alliance in the Twenty-First Century (Won-soo Kim)
US-ROK Defense Cooperation (William M. Drennan)
Changes in the Combined Operations Arrangement in Korea (Kim Jae-chang)
Domestic Politics and the Changing Contours of the ROK-US Alliance: The End of the Status Quo (Lee Chung-min)

China
US-China Relations and America’s Pacific Alliances in the Post–-9/11 Era (David M. Lampton)
China and America’s Northeast Asian Alliances: Approaches, Politics, and Dilemmas (Jing Huang)
Contributors