Research
- +8
William J. Burns, Michael Chertoff, Catherine Ashton, …
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Source: Getty
In The Media
U.S. Must Appreciate Merits of a Modest Deal With North Korea
America’s dealmaker-in-chief should shed his illusions of a grand bargain with Kim Jong Un and embrace the art of the possible. For clues, President Trump should look at the experience of the Iran nuclear agreement.
Published on Apr 7, 2019
Now that North Korean president Kim Jong Un has rejected Donald Trump’s offer to “go big” and agree to immediate, full denuclearisation, the US president has a choice to make: double down or embrace the art of the possible. Despite the overtures, Mr Kim remains convinced that nuclear weapons guarantee his security, stature and survival. Full denuclearisation remains an important aspiration, but the more practical challenge is to reduce nuclear danger now.
This article was originally published in the Financial Times.
About the Author
William J. Burns
Former Carnegie President (2015-2021)
A former career diplomat, William J. Burns served as director of the CIA, deputy secretary of State, and ambassador to Russia and Jordan. Burns was also president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace from 2015 to 2021.
- Reimagining Transatlantic Relations
- A New U.S. Foreign Policy for the Post-Pandemic LandscapeCommentary
William J. Burns
Recent Work
Foreign PolicyNuclear PolicyArms ControlNorth AmericaUnited StatesMiddle EastIranEast AsiaNorth Korea
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
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