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The intensification of US-China competition is heavily affecting
the countries all around the world including the Korean Peninsula. This
competition is difficult to explain without analyzing Trump's America First
policy. In this Global NK commentary, Professor Won Gon Park of
Handong Global University states that the Trump administration pursues
'selective engagement' by "seeking to revise alliances so that allies
shoulder their fair share of responsibilities and costs to provide public
goods for the security of the world." He adds that denuclearization of
the Korean Peninsula is also becoming increasingly difficult to achieve
due to the US-China competition. In particular, South Korea will likely be
pressured by the US to balance China while China continues to shield
North Korea from UN sanctions. Professor Park argues that 2020 will be
an especially challenging year for the Korean Peninsula. If no progress is
made in the denuclearization progress within this year, which is the self-
imposed deadline set by North Korea, North Korea may act in a 'new
way' that resembles its provocative behavior throughout 2017.
[Read Commentary]
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