To Start Talks With North Korea, Look to the Iran Deal
— but don’t hold your breath
In The News Piece in Foreign Policy
Sept. 12, 2016
As North Korea carried out its fifth nuclear test last week, the International Atomic Energy Agency released its third report assessing the status of the nuclear deal that the United States and five other world powers reached with Iran over a year ago. Although it received scant attention, the report confirmed that the landmark deal is working — Iran continues to be in full compliance with the agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
It is tempting to want to think that the Iran nuclear agreement could offer a similar path forward with North Korea. But the two cases are so different that it’s difficult to compare them.