North Korea Could Warm to Talks After Bolton’s Ouster

North Korea was long averse to 'war maniac'

President Trump’s decision to fire John Bolton has a lot of potential impacts on US foreign policy, broadly positive impacts since Bolton was very averse to diplomacy and seemed to be openly undermining such efforts.

Efforts to renew talks with North Korea could be a big beneficiary, as North Korea has had major problems with “war maniac” Bolton. The hope is they will see Trump’s move as a positive sign.

Experts say North Korea will likely try to spin Bolton’s ouster as a win for them, and with everyone lining up to declare interest in talks in recent weeks, it seems it might happen sooner, rather than later.

North Korea’s problem with Bolton was primarily around him advocating the “Libya model” for denuclearization. In Libya, the US got the Gadhafi government to give up its nuclear equipment, then attacked Libya and imposed regime change, leaving it as a failed state. That’s hardly what North Korea wants, and Trump has lambasted Bolton for suggesting it calling it a “not smart” thing to say.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.