Tag: Joe Biden

Here is the latest world leader to contact Joe Biden after his media declared election win:

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his incoming U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, agreed to work closely together to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, as they had a 14-minute phone conversation Thursday, Cheong Wa Dae said.

Biden described South Korea as a “linchpin” of security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, according to Moon’s spokesman Kang Min-seok.

Moon asked Biden to “communicate closely” for the forward-looking development of the Seoul-Washington alliance, denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and establishment of lasting peace here.

The president cited the allies’ 70 years of partnership for the protection of such shared values as democracy and human rights, Kang said.

Biden reaffirmed Washington’s firm security commitment to South Korea and said that he would “closely cooperate” for a resolution to the North Korean nuclear issue, he added.

They also agreed to expand cooperation on global challenges, including COVID-19 and climate change, and agreed to meet at an early date after Biden’s inauguration, Kang said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but really nothing new in this phone call.

It is believed that the Biden administration is going to take the more conventional approach to North Korea policy that gave us the nuclear armed Kim regime we have today:

Analysts say that once Biden takes office in January, he is likely to take a far more conventional approach to relations with North Korea than his predecessor—who famously eschewed formal diplomatic channels and instead put his faith in his personal relationship with Kim.

“I strongly suspect the Biden Administration’s approach on North Korea will rely on pressure and sanctions to raise the cost to North Korea of its nuclear and missile programs,” Revere says.

Having served as Vice President from 2008 to 2016 under Barack Obama, Biden comes into office familiar with the North Korea question. The Obama Administration took a starkly different approach to Pyongyang than the outgoing Trump administration did, refraining from any high-level dialogue as part of a policy dubbed “strategic patience.”

The core of the policy was waiting for international sanctions to cut off North Korea’s sources of outside revenue, eventually forcing Pyongyang to take verifiable steps toward denuclearization as a way of winning sanctions relief and gaining access to the international trade system.

The policy achieved none of its objectives, however, as North Korea expanded its nuclear capability throughout Obama’s term.

TIME magazine

You can read more at the link, but I would not be surprised if the Biden administration lets the Moon administration lead the way on North Korea policy making. That means and end to the Korean War declaration followed by the easing of sanctions on North Korea for cross border projects for little to nothing in return from the Kim regime.

The Biden administration has vowed to strengthen alliances with America’s allies and one way to do that with South Korea is quickly sign a cost sharing agreement:

The election of U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden would mean a stronger alliance with South Korea and other allies, but tensions with North Korea could escalate because Pyongyang could try to test his administration, experts said Saturday.

“I think if Biden is elected, most American allies, including South Korea, will breathe a sigh of relief. He is likely to work much harder to strengthen our alliances,” said Gregg Brazinsky, professor of history and international affairs at George Washington University.

One of Biden’s key foreign policy advisers, Brian McKeon, said the Democratic candidate would immediately seek to repair the country’s alliances and reaffirm the United States’ commitment to improving its relations with its allies.

“(Biden) frequently says when he takes office, he will immediately get on the phone with some of our key allies in Europe and Asia, and centrally say, ‘America is back, and we have your back’,” McKeon said in a recent interview with Yonhap News Agency.  (………..)

Brazinsky noted a Biden administration would likely treat U.S. allies with more respect.

“The U.S. will have severe economic difficulties due to the (COVID-19) pandemic, and it is possible that even under Biden, the U.S. will need South Korea to share more of the costs of maintaining American troops,” he told Yonhap.

“But I think if this is the case, Biden will attempt to negotiate this change in a manner that treats South Korea with the appropriate respect,” he added. (………………)

Harry Kazianis, senior director of Korean studies at the Washington-based Institute for the National Interest, said that Biden would likely seek to quickly conclude the negotiations and at a much lower rate of increase.

“I would argue that a Biden Administration would quickly sign a new SMA with Seoul within the first 100 days of taking office, as Biden will not want to drag on talks any longer and likely ask for a 3-5 percent increase per year for a multiyear period,” he said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I think Seoul would be willing to give the Biden administration a small increase because it would allow Biden to say he got the ROK to pay more when Trump could not.