The Treaty of Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in North Korea’s Denuclearization Process: Implications for Northeast Asia

Abstract

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)is an essential milestone in the history of disarmament. The Korean Peninsula has historically been a victim of great power rivalries in Northeast Asia. The paper argues that North Korea’s nuclear ambitions need to contextualize the persistent nuclear threats and the erosion of traditional arms control regime in the region. Despite the unchanging security scenario on the Korean peninsula, even after the Cold War and North-South Confrontation, North Korea’s nuclear issue has been caught in the web of great power rivalry. It also argues that so far, the NPT has failed to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and nuclear disarmament would not be achieved with nuclear deterrence, and all the parties must join the treaty by acknowledging the urgent need through the prism of the constant escalating risks of nuclear conflict in the region. Converting the existing truce agreement to a permanent or partial peace agreement on the Korean War could be a starting point in solving North Korea’s nuclear deadlock and denuclearizing process. The only nuclear weapon country that voted on the first committee General Assembly draft resolution of TPNW signifies that North Korea seems optimistic to walk in the path of a global mission of the nuclear weapon free world.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

i US President Donald Trump stated that America’s withdrawal is directly linked to the Chinese arms buildup in the Pacific, including within the South-China Sea, as Beijing is not a signatory of the treaty.

ii Trump says to stop “expensive,” “provocative” South Korea war games. 12 June 2018. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-usa-wargamesidUSKBN1J80T5.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sudhakar Vaddi

Sudhakar Vaddi is an Assistant Professor/Korean Studies Division/Centre for East Asian Studies/School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi India. He was also a recipient of a prestigious pre-doctoral fellowship from the Academy of Korean Studies. E-mail: [email protected]