Distinguished University Service Professor, Dr. John Mearshimer, one of most noted political scientists in the world, took debaters’ questions on the September-October missile defense topic.
A highlight:
The US simply cannot reduce its presence in Northeast Asia, because they are needed there to contain China. In fact, the US is likely to increase its force levels in East Asia over time. This is what the pivot to Asia is all about. But let’s assume I am wrong and that the US is willing to pull most of its forces out of South Korea and the surrounding area. Would that work to get NK to give up its nuclear weapons? I think the answer is no, because NK’s greatest fear is regime change, which the US is addicted to, and the US can always strike NK from afar (and maybe in conjunction with SK’s formidable conventional forces) after NK has abandoned its nuclear weapons. As long as NK has nuclear weapons the US will not attack it for purposes of regime change. So, why would they give those weapons up? It would be a remarkably foolish move on their part. They know what happened to Gaddafi after he gave up his WMD programs on the promise the US and its allies would not threaten his survival. He’s now six feet under the ground!
You can read the full interview here.