For most of the past few decades, American administrations weary of conflict and wary of war pursued a policy towards North Korea (a hermit kingdom that has starved and impoverished its citizens in service of developing a ballistic nuclear arsenal) which has generously been described as “strategic patience.” Much as a beleaguered parent might eschew a harsher approach that necessitates greater effort, Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama treated the notably spoiled (by their own terrified compatriots) Kim Jong Il, and then Kim Jong Un, with a combination of stern words and incentives meant respectively to instill discipline and reward good behavior.
The Kims, however, have heretofore evaded policing by the free-world super-parent, the U.S., because they had the indulgent People’s Republic of China right next door.
But that was before Jan. 20, 2017, when President Trump took charge, and everything changed.
For our 45th President, not “strategic patience” but “strategic dynamism” is the order of the day, every day, and in every respect. Not merely from the moment he took office, but from the moment he was elected, he has worked with unprecedented vigor and alacrity — and with reason: He inherited a country and a world facing existential threats that were allowed to intensify to the point of intolerability. He recognized that the lives and future of the free world are on the line.
As to North Korea, Trump rightly said that the peninsula should have been denuclearized “a long time ago,” before their missile technology and potential destructive power posed credible risk to close to half the planet, including parts of the U.S. The president has addressed this threat directly and methodically, rebuilding and reasserting both our economic and our military power to bring North Korea to the table in Tuesday’s historic Singapore summit, and negotiate their commitment to complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization.
The U.S. and North Korea have now embarked on a course set for peace and prosperity, including not only the elimination of North Korea’s nuclear capabilities but also the recovery and repatriation of American POW/MIA remains.
As President Trump said of the document he signed together with Chairman Kim, “A lot of goodwill went into this, a lot of work, a lot of preparation.” Crucial to the latter has been Trump’s bold approach to China. President Xi Jinping understands that China is expected to be our partner in assuring North Korea’s adherence to its pledges.
What we’ve seen during the past 48 hours is the reincarnation of a quintessentially American doctrine: peace through strength.
Not since Ronald Reagan have we had a president who has so ably combined fiscal and economic policy with defense policy to restore our position as the greatest and most potent economic and military power in the world — providing the credibility and leverage to make clear to our adversaries, and to our allies, that we can, and must, be taken seriously as a force for good.
[Related: Trump plays hardball on North Korea summit, just like Reagan did]
Anyone facing Trump in negotiation will want to be on the right side of that force.
In addition to Xi, President Moon Jae-in of South Korea and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan each have a role in bringing North Korea into the community of peaceful nations — and none of them would have had that role without an American president who proved that the U.S. once more leads from the front, in every way, from trade policy to nuclear policy.
Moon recently joined a growing chorus calling for Trump to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
“The prize I want is victory for the world,” responded President Trump, whose strategic dynamism and unique gifts of leadership offer the world its best chance of achieving that urgent and transformational goal.
The Honorable Nan Hayworth, M.D. (@NanHayworth) is a board-certified ophthalmologist and first female physician ever elected to a full term in Congress, in which she represented the 19th District of New York. She is a member of the board of the Independent Women’s Forum and chairman of the board of directors of ConservAmerica.
