Asia’s Big What If: What Happens If Kim Jong-Un Is No More?

A collapse of the Kim regime would send shockwaves throughout Northeast Asia, writes the Council on International Policy’s J. Berkshire Miller.

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[comment/analysis] North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has not been spotted for weeks and rumors are proliferating about the truth behind his public disappearance. To be sure, the truth likely lies between ankle surgery and an internal coup. Meanwhile, Pyongyang has broken a long deadlock on talks with Seoul through the dispatch of three senior officials that traveled to South Korea last week and agreed to resume dialogue. But while the fate of Kim remains speculative, there is cause to start dusting off strategies in Washington, Tokyo and Seoul on the next steps. Indeed, a collapse of the Kim regime would send shockwaves throughout Northeast Asia and further compel the underperforming trilateral group to put aside political grievances to ensure security on the Korean peninsula and in the region.

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