Brooks: "Kim Jong-un's Trust in Associates is Limited... Should Include 'Top-Down'"

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[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter]Vincent Brooks, former commander of the United States Forces Korea, argued that the new U.S. administration under Joe Biden should utilize a 'top-down' approach involving the highest-level officials in talks with North Korea.

At a webinar titled "Biden Administration, Strategic Shift in Northeast Asia and the Korean Peninsula" hosted by the Choi Jong-hyun Institute on the 29th, former Commander Brooks said, "The approach to North Korea should maintain pressure through sanctions and international cooperation, but it must be balanced with an active approach for constructive engagement with North Korea."

He stated, "At the center of this approach should be a top-down method," adding, "Since Kim Jong-un has limited trust in those around him, a bottom-up (working-level) approach will not reflect his intentions."

He continued, "Initially, the highest-level officials must be prepared to establish relations, and over time, continuous engagement should allow trust to build at lower levels."

He emphasized, "South Korea and the United States must have serious discussions to establish a new relationship with North Korea," and "This relationship must be new from North Korea's perspective and perceived as a step back from a hostile relationship."

He said, "It is important to recognize that establishing a new relationship is the priority for North Korea, and once that is resolved, progress on other substantive issues will follow."

He added, "The U.S. and South Korea must be willing to take some risks," explaining, "This is not a comfortable or routine approach, especially for the U.S., but it is a risk that must be taken to provide the momentum and lubricant necessary to prevent the relationship from becoming deadlocked as in the past."

He also said, "The U.S. and South Korea should clearly express various concerns they want to raise with North Korea, such as human rights and abductee issues," but cautioned, "These issues should not be addressed simultaneously because North Korea cannot handle them all at once."

Furthermore, he urged that the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) on defense cost-sharing between South Korea and the U.S. should be concluded within six months of the Biden administration's inauguration, proposing that the agreement be settled as a three-year deal to protect it from partisanship and nationalism, then return to five-year terms thereafter.

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