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Tue, August 21, 2018 | 02:26

Opinion > Columnists > John Burton >

Koreans as well as many Americans are bewildered by the actions of Donald Trump. But perhaps the best way to understand him is that while he is the first outright demagogue to occupy the White House, many of his policies are coherent and consistent if they are viewed in the context of the American populist movement that stretches back to the 19th century. What Trump is doing has a long historical pedigree in the U.S.

John Burton | 2018-08-20 17:14

Korea's sizzling summer

Korea is not the only country to suffer record high temperatures this summer. A global heat wave is taking its toll on other regions ranging from North America and Scandinavia to the African Sahel and South Asia.

John Burton | 2018-08-06 17:40

The landslide victory for President Moon Jae-in's party in local elections last month has promised to give momentum to his ambitious economic reforms. But the recent backlash against such populist measures as raising the minimum wage suggests he still faces a tough fight in implementing them.

John Burton | 2018-07-23 17:24

Where are the Korean voices?

A month after the Singapore summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the consensus in the U.S. media remains largely negative about the event. There have been recent reports based on intelligence leaks from the Pentagon, for example, that Pyongyang is continuing to expand its nuclear and missile programs despite its promises to Trump that it would denuclearize.

John Burton | 2018-07-09 17:27

Why Trump is right on North Korea

If the Singapore summit had been a Broadway production, it would have been closed by now due to a critical panning. The U.S. media has largely dismissed the event as a typical piece of Trump showbiz without much substance. The Singapore Declaration is seen as lacking details to support Pyongyang's promise to denuclearize, with Trump falling victim to the trickery of a wily Oriental despot.

John Burton | 2018-06-25 17:24

What to look for at the summit

No one believes anymore that the summit in Singapore between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will lead to Pyongyang immediately giving up its nuclear and missile programs. Many thorny issues remain such as what is meant by “denuclearization” of the Korean Peninsula. Does that mean just that North Korea would eventually dismantle its nuclear and missile programs or that the U.S. will also withdraw its nuclear umbrella from the peninsula?

John Burton | 2018-06-11 17:46

If the Trump-Kim summit has gone off the rails, blame it on the bad blood between Kim Kye-gwan, North Korea's first vice foreign minister, and John Bolton, the new U.S. national security adviser, who have confronted each other over North Korea's nuclear program for years.

John Burton | 2018-05-28 16:45

Moon's economic gamble

With the euphoria surrounding President Moon Jae-in's detente with North Korea and his resulting sky-high approval ratings, it is sometimes difficult to remember that he was elected a year ago primarily on his promises to fix the economy. On that score, Moon has failed to deliver much.

John Burton | 2018-05-14 17:12

Hope springs eternal

In 1992, when I was appointed Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, my editors and I thought I would be covering the end of the Cold War on the Korean Peninsula, following the demise of the Soviet Union just months earlier. After all, the two Koreas had just signed in December 1991 a basic agreement on reconciliation, non-aggression and cooperation and exchanges.

John Burton | 2018-04-29 16:38

Korea's terrible DC blunder

The Korean government has done itself a great disservice in cutting funding to the US-Korea Institute (USKI), which will force the think tank's closure. There is no upside, only downside in the decision.

John Burton | 2018-04-16 16:22

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