The Impossible State

North Korea is the Impossible State. Each week join the people who know the most about North Korea—The Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Victor Cha, Mike Green, and Sue Mi Terry—for an insider's discussion with host H. Andrew Schwartz about the United States’ top national security priority. Email your questions to ImpossibleState@csis.org.

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1
Diplomacy or Crisis with DPRK in 2024?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Jung Pak, deputy assistant secretary of state for Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands and the U.S. senior official for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea at the US Department of State, to discuss the Biden administration's North Korea policy, DPRK-Russia cooperation as well as what to expect from North Korea in 2024.
25 min
2
Biden Administration's North Korea Policy
This bonus episode is from the JoongAng - CSIS Forum 2024: The Polycrisis in 2024 on March 3, 2024. Dr. Mira Rapp-Hooper, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Indo-Pacific Affairs, White House National Security Council had a conversation with Victor Cha, Senior Vice President for Asia, CSIS to discuss Biden Administration’s North Korea Policy.
19 min
3
Is North Korea Really Ready for War?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Sung-han Kim, Former ROK National Security Advisor and Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies at Korea University, to discuss North Korea's current situation and recent developments as well as what to expect from North Korea in 2024.
52 min
4
Slow Boil: What to Expect from the DPRK in 2024
In this episode, Dr. Ellen Kim is joined by Dr. Victor Cha to discuss the Korea Chair's latest publication, Slow Boil: What to Expect from the DPRK in 2024, the likelihood of increased North Korean belligerence in 2024 and how it ties to the upcoming U.S. election.
23 min
5
Anything Afoot in Japan-DPRK Relations in 2024?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. James Brady to discuss the recent earthquake, the political fundraising scandal, and speculation regarding Japan-DPRK relations in 2024.
44 min
6
U.S.-ROK Alliance Under Trump 2?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Mr. Scott Snyder to discuss the upcoming external and internal pressures on the U.S.-South Korea alliance and what a second Trump Administration would mean for the Korean peninsula.
33 min
7
Japan's Foreign Policy in 2024
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Ms. Yuki Tatsumi to explore Japan's foreign policy outlook for the upcoming year.
40 min
8
U.S.-Japan-ROK Relations: Next Steps After Camp...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Katrin Katz to discuss the US-Japan-ROK trilateral relationship following the Camp David Summit, what to expect moving forward, and the challenges the US-Japan-ROK face in China, North Korea, and Russia.
43 min
9
The War in Ukraine and Russia-North Korean Arms...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Ms. Jill Dougherty to discuss the current state of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the motivations of the DPRK following the Kim-Putin summit, and China's support for Russia's war.
38 min
10
The Sister
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Sung-Yoon Lee to discuss his recent book, The Sister, and Kim Yo Jong's prominent role both inside and outside the state.
38 min
11
A Renewed Axis: Putin and Kim
In this episode, Dr. Ellen Kim is joined by Dr. Angela Stent and Dr. Victor Cha to discuss the second summit between Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin, the significance of the meeting at the spaceport, and the reactions of the United States and South Korea to this summit.
25 min
12
South Korea's Role in a Taiwan Contingency
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Sungmin Cho to discuss South Korea's role in deterring North Korea's opportunistic aggression in a Taiwan contingency and providing rear area support.
31 min
13
Reviewing the Camp David Trilateral Summit
This bonus episode is from the Reviewing the Camp David Trilateral Summit Event on August 29, 2023. Dr. Kurt Campbell, Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs on the National Security Council, Ambassador Cho Hyundong of the Republic of Korea and Ambassador Tomita Koji of Japan discuss the summit and future trilateral relations.
54 min
14
A Week of Detention and Deterrence on the Korea...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Andrew Yeo to discuss a U.S. soldier who crossed into North Korea, short-range ballistic missiles conducted by North Korea, and the newly formed NCG between the United States and South Korea.
26 min
15
Can the Downward Spiral in China-Korea Relation...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha and Andrew Schwartz are joined by Ms. Bonnie Glaser to discuss the relations between South Korea and China, the upcoming NATO summit in July, and the relationship between China and North Korea during the COVID lockdown.
34 min
16
Deep Dive: North Korea's Missile Threats
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Mr. Ankit Panda to discuss the recent North Korea's military spy satellite launch from the Sohae satellite launch site, North Korea's weapons development, and the 7th nuclear test.
43 min
17
Republic of Korea State Visit Policy Debrief wi...
This bonus episode is from Georgetown University's Asian Studies Program Event on May 5th. Dr. Victor Cha is joined by special guest Mark B. Lambert to debrief on President Yoon’s State Visit to Washington and related policy discussion.
46 min
18
Yoon's China Policy: The Gloves are off?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Ramon Pacheco Pardo to discuss the recent Biden-Yoon Summit from the European perspective, Yoon's policy regarding China, economic coercion, and North Korea.
39 min
19
The Biden-Yoon Summit: Success or Not?
In this episode, Victor Cha is joined by Jinmyung Kim to discuss the significance of Yoon's state visit and the takeaways on North Korean denuclearization and trilateral relations with the United States, Korea, and Japan.
44 min
20
Unpacking North Korea’s Isolation- The CommonHe...
In a crossover episode with CSIS's The CommonHealth, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by J. Stephen Morrison to discuss an update on what we know, suspect, and do not know about North Korea still in extreme isolation from the rest of the world.
30 min
21
Should We Sign a Peace Treaty with North Korea?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Ms. Jenny Town and Mr. Frank Aum to discuss the incentives versus pressure debate, rethink working theories around sanctions and China’s role in negotiations, and explore how North Korea is affected by its changing external security environment.
45 min
22
Do Sanctions Really Work on North Korea?
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Dr. Soo Kim and Mr. Anthony Ruggiero to discuss sanctions on North Korea, the history of sanctions, how to measure its effectiveness, China’s reaction to sanctions and ultimately answer the question of whether sanctions really works on North Korea.
47 min
23
National Strategy for Countering North Korea
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Ambassador Robert Joseph and Greg Scarlatoiu to discuss their recently released report for the National Institute for Public Policy.
43 min
24
Japan's New National Defense Strategy: Implicat...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha is joined by Mr. Christopher B. Johnstone to discuss the implications of Japan’s new National Defense Strategy for the United States and Korea, the Biden-Kishida Summit, and ROK-Japan bilateral relation.
31 min
25
Countering Chinese Economic Coercion and NK’s L...
In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha discusses his new Foreign Affairs essay on what the U.S. and allies should do to counter Chinese economic coercion, plus a discussion of North Korea’s latest ICBM engine test.
27 min