Sydney Seiler was the national intelligence officer for North Korea at the National Intelligence Council from 2020 to 2023 and is one of the nation’s top experts on North Korea. Previously, he was the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) senior analyst and senior defense intelligence expert for North Korea from 2016 to 2020, serving as the principal adviser and senior expert on Korean Peninsula security issues to the USFK commander and the U.S. Defense Intelligence Enterprise. Mr. Seiler also served as the U.S. special envoy for Six Party Talks (2014–2015), where he coordinated U.S. diplomacy and policy on the DPRK and led negotiations with North Korea. Prior to that, Mr. Seiler served as the director for Korea on the National Security Council (2011–2014). A member of the Senior National Intelligence Service, Mr. Seiler has over 40 years of experience focusing on Korean Peninsula affairs in a range of executive management, intelligence, and policy positions within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Directorate of Analysis, the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, the CIA’s Open Source Center, and the National Security Agency. He has three decades of experience watching North Korea and 12 years of serving in South Korea. He received his MA degree in Korean studies from Yonsei University and is a graduate of the Korean language programs of the Defense Language Institute and Yonsei University.

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The Impossible State

Upcoming U.S.-ROK Summit and the Future of Inter-Korean Engagement

Dr. Victor Cha, Dr. Andrew Yeo, and Mr. Sydney Seiler discussed the future of inter-Korean engagement, the upcoming APEC meetings, and the upcoming summit meeting between Presidents Trump and Lee. 

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha and Sydney Seiler — October 22, 2025

The Impossible State Podcast

Responding to Trump’s New Foreign Policy Paradigm

Please join the CSIS Geopolitics and Foreign Policy (GFP) Department for a discussion of the ways in which U.S. allies and partners around the world are navigating the Trump administration’s policies.

Event — October 6, 2025

Kim Jong-un’s Flurry of Diplomacy

In early September, Kim Jong-un took the rare but not entirely surprising step of traveling to Beijing to participate in the September celebration of the “80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War,” as China calls it.

Newsletter by Sydney Seiler — October 2, 2025

The Impossible State

US-South Korea Trade Deal and Alliance Modernization?

Dr. Victor Cha and Mr. Sydney Seiler discuss a potential U.S.–South Korea trade deal before the August 1 tariff pause and how to modernize the alliance under new leadership.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha and Sydney Seiler — July 28, 2025

The Impossible State Podcast