ABSTRACT
When the bloc disintegrated, Juche and Chajusong (self-reliance and independence) were put to the ultimate test – which they failed. One could, of course, read the writing on the wall as early as 1988 – but no one realized it would happen so quickly, or that North Korea was as vulnerable as it subsequently proved to be. What were the repercussions that this development would have for the reunification question?
