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Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program
Thesis (PhD) University of Pretoria, 2025
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University of Pretoria
2026
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| _version_ | 1869483773565861888 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author2 | Africa, Sandra |
| author_browse | Africa, Sandra |
| author_facet | Africa, Sandra |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | © 2024 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. |
| description | Thesis (PhD) University of Pretoria, 2025 |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/107495 |
| institution | University of Pretoria (South Africa) |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2026-07-01T04:04:19.788Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | University of Pretoria |
| publisherStr | University of Pretoria |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository |
| spelling | oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/107495 Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program Africa, Sandra ianflemingz@aol.com Zou, Ian Fleming UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Economic Sanctions Nuclear Non-proliferation North Korea Cartel Theory Juche Ideology Songun Ideology Thesis (PhD) University of Pretoria, 2025 This study critically evaluates the effectiveness of economic sanctions in curbing North Korea’s nuclear proliferation ambitions, arguing that their failure stems from both internal and external factors. Having withdrawn from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 2003, North Korea presents a challenge due to its ideological rigidity, totalitarian governance model , and highly centralized economy. The thesis, which uses a realist theoretical framework, applies, cartel theory to examine how North Korea’s internal political structure, which is anchored in Juche and Songun ideology, enables it to resist external economic coercion. The regime has developed illicit economic networks, elite patronage systems, and internal propaganda tools that not only cushion the effects of sanctions, but also turn them into tools of domestic legitimization. Externally, the multilateral sanctions regime is compromised by the inconsistent enforcement of key powers. China’s and Russia’s strategic noncompliance and selective implementation of United Nations (UN) sanctions undermine the cohesion of the United States (US) led “sanctions cartel.” South Korea’s fluctuating engagement policies further complicate regional consensus on how to respond to North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. The study concludes that sanctions alone cannot dismantle North Korea’s nuclear program. Rather than deterring proliferation, they have reinforced regime resilience and nuclear resolve. A hybrid approach combining sanctions with sustained diplomatic engagement and tailored incentives is likely to be more successful. By integrating an analysis of North Korea’s internal dynamics with an assessment of the implications of external geopolitical fragmentation, this research contributes to the literature on the efficacy of economic sanctions as a tool to curb nuclear non-proliferation It further emphasizes the need for context-specific strategies that account for the political, economic, and ideological structure of the target state. UP Postgraduate research grant Political Sciences PhD International Relations Unrestricted Faculty of Humanities SDG-04: Quality education 2026-01-22T10:20:39Z 2026-01-22T10:20:39Z 2026-04 2025-03-30 Thesis * April 2026 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/107495 10.25403/UPresearchdata.31113520 en_US © 2024 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria |
| spellingShingle | UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Economic Sanctions Nuclear Non-proliferation North Korea Cartel Theory Juche Ideology Songun Ideology Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title | Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title_full | Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title_short | Evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization: a study of U.S. economic sanctions on North Korea’s nuclear program |
| title_sort | evaluating economic instruments on denuclearization a study of u s economic sanctions on north korea s nuclear program |
| topic | UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Economic Sanctions Nuclear Non-proliferation North Korea Cartel Theory Juche Ideology Songun Ideology |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/2263/107495 |