Q&A: Resolving the Iranian and North Korean Nuclear Crises

Joseph Cirincione, the director of the Nonproliferation Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says that he has been “encouraged” by reported steps by the United States and North Korea toward resolving the dispute over Pyongyang’s nuclear-weapons program. The way forward, he says, is to fashion an agreement under which North Korea starts to dismantle its nuclear-arms program in return for the simultaneous start of U.S. political and economic incentives. “You can’t expect the North Koreans to completely disarm based on a vague promise that the United States will then recognize them and begin to change the relationship,” he says. “There’s too much animosity, there’s too much mistrust in this relationship. You’ve got to give a little to get a little.” On Iran, he says that the United States, working with the European Union (EU), should propose a plan that allows Tehran to have nuclear power plants powered by Iranian uranium but bars the development of weapons-grade materials. Full Story