The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
Following a period of rapidly rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula last year, the current cycle of negotiations is a welcome change. The international community is closely watching to see if high level U.S.-North Korea talks can produce a durable process for addressing complex security, political, and economic issues. This Harvard Korea Working Group public panel event will draw on the experiences of former senior U.S. negotiators who have engaged in deal-making with North Korean counterparts.
Dr. John Park (Moderator), Director, Korea Working Group, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Kim Yonghyon, Consul General (Opening Remarks)
Lim Sung-nam, First Vice Foreign Minister
Ambassador Christopher Hill, Former Head of the U.S. Delegation to the Six-Party Talks
Ambassador Daniel Russel, Former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian & Pacific Affairs
Dr. Gary Samore, Executive Director for Research, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Former White House Coordinator for Arms Control & Weapons of Mass Destruction