Regime Change and Its Limits

In: Foreign affairs, Band 84, Heft 4, S. 66-78

Abstract

It is noted that although a third of the "axis of evil" is now occupied by US forces, the other two thirds -- North Korea & Iran -- remain clear threats to US interests, & that thus far, the Bush administration has consistently shown that it prefers to respond to these threats by working towards regime change rather than through any other means. This article examines the option of regime change as a foreign policy centerpiece, as well as alternative options including regime change's cousin, regime "evolution," military means, diplomacy, & the acceptance of nuclear proliferation. Focusing on the threat of nuclear proliferation & development in Iran & North Korea, it is argued that the strategy of regime change works too slowly to remain the centerpiece of US foreign policy regarding international threats. It is concluded that diplomacy should be the heart of the US policy toward both countries, & that regime change is best viewed as a complement to diplomacy & deterrence. T. K. Brown