Trump’s Second Term Might Open Pandora’s Nuclear Box Globally
By Jun Bong-Geun
Professor Emeritus, Korea National Diplomatic Academy
▶️The international nuclear order, based on the NPT, has been under stress as great power competition intensified since the late 2010s and the U.S.—once the foremost champion of nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation —has retreated from global governance.
▶️President Trump is known for his disregard for the NPT, desire to achieve nuclear superiority over nuclear equilibrium and strategic stability, and reluctance to extend the U.S. nuclear umbrella to non-nuclear allies. Thus he is perceived as a serious risk factor to the already fragile international nuclear order.
▶️While President Trump’s willingness to engage with Kim Jong Un may help ease military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, his indifference to the complete denuclearization of North Korea could further stimulate South Koreans’ demands for nuclear armament.
