Immovable Object: North Korea's 70 Years at War with American Power

North Korea and the United States have been officially at war for over 70 years, one of the longest lasting and most unbalanced conflicts in world history, in which a small East Asian state has held its own against a Western superpower for over three generations. With the Western world increasingly pivoting its attention towards Northeast Asia, and the region likely to play a more central role in the global economy, North Korea's importance as a strategically located country, potential economic powerhouse and major opponent of Western regional hegemony will only grow over the coming decades. This work is the first fully comprehensive study of the ongoing war between the two parties, and covers the history of the conflict from the first American clashes with Korea's nationalist movement in 1945 and imposition of its military rule over southern Korea to North Korea's nuclear deterrence program and ongoing tensions with the U.S. today. The nature of the antagonism between the two states, one profoundly influenced by both decolonisation and wartime memory, and the other uncompromising in its attempts to globally impose its leadership and ideology, is covered in detail. Northern Korea is one of very few inhabited parts of the world never to have been placed under Western rule, and its fiercely nationalist identity as a deeply Confucian civilisation state has made it considerably more difficult to tackle than almost any other American adversary. This work elucidates the conflicting ideologies and the discordant designs for the Korean nation which have fuelled the war, and explores emerging fields of conflict which have become increasingly central in recent years such as economic and information warfare. Prevailing trends in the conflict and its global implications, including the multiple wars that have been waged by proxy, are also examined in detail. An in-depth assessment of the past provides context key to understanding the future trajectories this relationship could take, and how a continuing shift in global order away from Western unipolarity is likely to influence its future.

About the Author :
A. B. Abrams has published widely on Korean politics and security, including several dozen articles in outlets such as 38North, The Diplomat and SinoNK among others, as well as multiple prior books. He holds Masters degrees in related subjects from the University of London. Having studied the Korean language at university in Pyongyang, he has spent considerable time in both North and South Korea and formed many contacts across the two countries. Abrams' prior works on geopolitics and security have received strong endorsements from multiple senior military officials, diplomats, professors and UN experts among others. He is proficient in multiple other Asian languages including Chinese.

Review :
"An excellent and informed introduction to North Korea and to America's unending confrontation with that poorly-understood country." -- Charles K. Armstrong, author of The North Korean Revolution, 1945 - 1950 "Immovable Object describes the people and government of an extraordinarily advanced nation, the DPRK, with objectivity, and even more importantly, with massive, fully credible documentation refuting all bigoted efforts to demonize and destroy this remarkable people by all means. As such, it is a desperately needed contribution to the accurate understanding of North Korea." --Carla Stea, Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG) and Global Research's Correspondent at UN headquarters, New York. "In the United States today, North Korea is the standard reference point for modern-day totalitarianism: a land of darkness that is considered a dangerous security threat because of the development of nuclear missiles capable of striking the U.S. A.B. Abrams' new book, Immovable Object: North Korea's 70 Years at War with American Power (Clarity Press, 2020), shows that the common perceptions in the U.S. of North Korea are mostly wrong... Abrams' book is most significant in helping readers to understand the DPRK's long staying power and in debunking media stereotypes, which have helped validate aggressive regime-change policies." - Jeremy Kuzmarov, Covert Action Quarterly "To understand where the Korean Peninsula might go in the rest of the 21st century, Abrams' telling of the story of how the two countries got to where they are today is essential."--Ankit Panda, senior editor, The Diplomat "A superb book that I most highly recommend. There is so much more information and narrative to be gleaned from Abrams's book that a review (even as lengthy as this) can touch on. Abrams goes into western media disinformation and propaganda campaigns against the DPRK. He answers why the DPRK state secrecy, media censorship, and why North Korean defector accounts should be regarded with deep skepticism. Read the impeccably substantiated Immovable Object and find out for yourself what undergirds the DPRK's resistance to US hegemony...." Kim Petersen, Dissident Voices "While controversial, Abrams is careful to support his assertions with footnotes and references, so that even those who find his conclusions unpalatable will be forced to weigh them carefully." -- John Everard, former British Ambassador to North Korea, former Coordinator UNSC Panel of Experts Korean Quarterly: Not since David Halberstam's The Coldest Winter (2007), has there been as comprehensive and deeply-researched study of the complex issues of U.S.-North Korean relations. This is a big, informative and engaging read, an excellent reference for anyone needing an up-to-date current study of U.S.-North Korean history and regional tensions. For readers with knowledge of Korean affairs, this book offers fresh perspective, critical analysis and revisionist insights. For first time readers, this is a very current reference. Written clearly and with fact-based criticism, this book lays out a thorough picture of the miscalculations and misguided U.S. policies towards North Korea, and of North Korea's rise as military and political power on the global stage.