[Biden Victory] 'Alliance Strengthening'... Biden's Korea Policy Signals Major Changes

North Korea Denuclearization Talks Shift from 'Top-Down' to 'Bottom-Up'
Expecting Predictable and Trustworthy Diplomatic Policies

[Asia Economy International Department Reporter] Experts on the Korean Peninsula in the United States predict that with the victory of Democratic candidate Joe Biden in the U.S. presidential election on the 7th (local time), a major change will come to U.S. policies related to the Korean Peninsula.

Regarding the South Korea-U.S. relationship, it is expected that the alliance with South Korea, which was shaken during the Donald Trump administration, will be restored and strengthened.

In particular, concerning efforts for North Korean denuclearization, unlike President Trump's 'top-down' approach, a more principled method based on working-level negotiations is anticipated.

Bruce Klingner, Senior Researcher at the Heritage Foundation, said, "Biden has declared that he will not engage in photo-op summits like President Trump," adding, "Biden will return to a bottom-up diplomacy that demands progress toward a denuclearization agreement through working-level negotiations first."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Experts foresee that the Biden administration will seek to find common ground through meticulous working-level efforts rather than the summit-level deal-making preferred by President Trump.

Celeste Arrington, Professor at George Washington University, said, "Whether under the Trump or Biden administration, denuclearization will be pursued, but the Biden administration will do so with a more concrete plan."

She stated this while noting that North Korea will continue to pursue nuclear weapons, including the long-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch system unveiled at the Workers' Party's 75th anniversary military parade last month.

Patrick Cronin, Director of Asia-Pacific Security at the Hudson Institute, said that the summits between President Trump and North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un could be seen as an attempt to dismantle the Cold War, but "without a leader's commitment to serious negotiations, there is no legitimate reason to return to summit-level talks."

Experts predict that the Biden administration's diplomacy will be more stable and beneficial to alliances.

Cronin said, "The Biden administration is more predictable and reliable based on traditional bipartisan foreign policy norms."

He emphasized, "Biden's approach can help reduce tensions without alienating U.S. allies like South Korea."

Experts pointed out that the South Korea-U.S. alliance experienced unexpected widespread turbulence during the Trump administration and expect the Biden administration to show a different attitude.

Professor Arrington predicted that under the Biden administration, the attitude of pressuring South Korea by shifting alliance relations, as seen in the Trump administration, will decrease, and "efforts to stabilize respect for South Korea and the burden-sharing negotiation process will be strengthened."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.