Juche Doctrine as the Official Ideology of North Korea and Effects on the North Korean Foreign Policy

Abstract

Juche, the official ideology of North Korea, is an original doctrine which influences every aspect of life and politics within the country. This ideology leads to one-man rule in the political area and highly statist and isolationist structure in the economic realm in North Korea. Effects of such an internal structure on the foreign relations of the country appear as the dominance of an uncompromising foreign policy philosophy. North Korea has a skeptical approach towards the external world and it pursues a military-first policy including nuclear armament in order to achieve its foreign policy goals and secure the continuation of Juche regime at home.

Keywords

North Korea, Juche, Socialism, Military-first Policy, Nuclear Armament

Citation

Kakışım, Can, “Juche Doctrine as the Official Ideology of North Korea and Effects on the North Korean Foreign Policy”, International Relations, Volume 14, Issue 56, 2017, pp. 73-88.

Affiliations

• Can KAKIŞIM, Assoc. Prof. Dr., Department of International Relations, Karabuk University