Why Calls for Regime Change in North Korea Can Be Counterproductive
This essay is part of a series, Pursuing Peaceful Coexistence with North Korea, exploring how can the United States and South Korea peacefully coexist with a nuclear North Korea.
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Lauren Sukin
Nonresident Scholar, Nuclear Policy Program
about
Dr. Lauren Sukin is an assistant professor of international relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
Her research examines issues of international security, focusing particularly on nuclear weapons and alliance politics. Dr. Sukin’s current book project argues that credible nuclear guarantees can create fears of reliance on nuclear allies, leading to support within client states for stronger and more independent military capabilities. Her broader research agenda also explores the dynamics of crisis politics, cyber security, public opinion, security challenges on the Korean Peninsula, and international conflict.
Dr. Sukin is also an editorial fellow in the nuclear security section of Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a centre affiliate at LSE's United States Centre, and an affiliate at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation.
Dr. Sukin’s research has been published in Journal of Conflict Resolution, International Interactions, Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology, Nonproliferation Review, and the Washington Quarterly, among other places. She has published commentary in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Washington Post, the National Interest, Arms Control Wonk, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Just Security, Lawfare, and War on the Rocks, among others.
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areas of expertise
education
PhD, Political Science, Stanford University, MA, Political Science, Stanford University, BA, Political Science, Brown University, BA, Literary Arts, Brown Universitylanguages
EnglishAll work from Lauren Sukin
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7 Results
· January 25, 2023
When Nuclear Superiority Isn’t Superior: Revisiting the Nuclear Balance of Power
Statistical analysis of nuclear crises tells an unexpected story about the usefulness of expanding nuclear arsenals.
· October 17, 2023
Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Why the US Fails to Deter North Korea, Despite Nuclear Superiority
The United States can’t simply demand that North Korea stops its provocations. But it can handle each such provocations with care, responding with coordinated, confident messaging that makes it clear North Korea is not the only actor with much at stake.
Rattling the Nuclear Saber: What Russia’s Nuclear Threats Really Mean
It is precisely because of, and not in spite of, the fact that Moscow and Pyongyang have repeatedly held their nuclear arsenals over Western heads that leaders should take these threats seriously.
· May 4, 2023
Cybersecurity, Surveillance, and Military Retaliation: Why Some Balloons Bust–and Others Don’t
So, what was it about this particular incident that generated such swift, bipartisan calls for a military response?
The Dueling Nuclear Nightmares Behind the South Korean President’s Alarming Comments
Yoon Suk-yeol’s call to develop nuclear weapons is fundamentally a call for South Korea to know it can protect itself in a changing security environment.
- Stephen Herzog,
- Lauren Sukin
Reducing Nuclear Salience: How to Reassure Northeast Asian Allies
Growing threats require renewed U.S. alliance deterrence and assurance initiatives in East Asia. But increasing the prominence of nuclear weapons in U.S. northeast Asian alliances could backfire.
