Learning Activity

Aired August 28, 2003

Representatives from the U.S., North Korea, Russia, South Korea and Japan are meeting in Beijing, China this week for talks aimed at eliminating North Korea's nuclear program. Learn about the Korean War and the escalation of the North Korean nuclear crisis.

Point out to your class that it has been 52 years since the start of the Korean War. Then have students work in groups to learn more about this conflict and the escalation of the North Korean nuclear crisis. Pose the following questions to guide students' research:

1. What was the Cold War?

2. How was the Korean conflict representative of the Cold War?

3. What is the status of relations between North and South Korea at this point in time?

4. What are the challenges to peace on the Korean peninsula?

5. Why did North Korea re-start its nuclear weapons program? Do you think the decision was based on an attempt to deter an attack, or do you think it was intended as a bargaining chip to be traded in return for aid?

6. How do the U.S., Japan, Russia, South Korea and China each play a role in the stabilization of the region?

After groups share their findings, have each student write an essay describing the challenges that the United States and its key allies face as they try to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis diplomatically. After students share their essays, ask: What strategy do you think the U.S. should take to avert a nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula? If the Beijing talks prove unsuccessful, should the U.S. military conduct joint naval training in the Coral Sea off Australia? State your rationale.

Correlated Standards

National Council for the Social Studies Standards

Standard VI: Power, Authority and Governance

Students will develop an understanding of how groups and nations attempt to resolve conflicts and seek to establish order and security.

Standard IX: Global Connections

Students will develop an understanding the increasingly important and diverse global connections among world societies.

The Curriculum Standards for Social Studies (http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/) are published by the National Council for Social Studies (http://ncss.org/).

Related Links

CNN.com: Rift-free start to N. Korea talks (http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/east/08/27/nkorea.talks/index.html)

Holt, Rinehart and Winston: Understanding North Korea (http://go.hrw.com/hrw.nd/arbiter/pRedirect?project=hrwonline&siteId=1578&pageId=11746)

CNN.com Special: North Korea Nuclear Tension (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2003/nkorea/)

The Thirtieth Anniversary of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (http://www.ucsusa.org/global_security/archive/page.cfm?pageID=1056)

Keywords

North Korea, nuclear weapons, proliferation, diplomacy, Beijing, interdicting