U.S. President Donald Trump has spent a lot of time trying to convince Kim Jong Un that great wealth awaits if he gives up his nuclear weapons and opens North Korea's economy. Yet that carries big risks for the young leader.
While Kim's calls for relaxing the sanctions cutting off North Korea from the global economy helped sink talks with Trump last month, it remains unclear whether he wants to follow other "Asian tigers" like Singapore and Vietnam and welcome a rush of foreign investment. That's especially true if that means giving up his nuclear weapons — the regime's so-called treasured sword.
"North Korea sees foreign businesses as the carrier of a highly contagious germ that could infect workers," said Andrei Lankov, a director at the Korea Risk Group consulting firm who has studied in North Korea and written extensively about the country. Openness could bring in a flood of outside information that finally loosens Kim's grip, Lankov added.