The Impossible State Podcast
Podcast

The Impossible State

North Korea is the Impossible State. Each episode, join the people who know the most about North Korea for an insiders’ discussion with host Victor Cha about one of the United States’ top national security priorities. 

 

The Impossible State is produced by David Lotfi

Podcast Series by Victor Cha and Sydney Seiler

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All The Impossible State Podcast Episodes

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The Impossible State

How Should the United States Counter the CRINK Axis?

Dr. Victor Cha, Igor Khrestin, Joseph Kim, and Dr. Maria Snegovaya join Will Todman to assess CRINK’s vulnerabilities and U.S. policy options on democracy, rights, and security.

Podcast Episode by Will Todman, Victor Cha, and Maria Snegovaya — June 12, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

The CRINK Challenge: Implications for North Korea and Global Security

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha, Dr. Edward Howell, and Mr. Sydney Seiler discussed North Korea's relationships with the CRINK countries and examine Beijing’s priorities heading into an imminent Xi-Kim summit. 

Podcast Episode by Sydney Seiler and Victor Cha — June 10, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

Cold Peace: Engaging DPRK to Reduce Risk and Threat

In this episode, Sydney Seiler, Ambassador Joseph Yun and Mr. Adam Farrar, discussed Dr. Victor Cha’s Foreign Affairs article “North Korea as It Is,” exploring frameworks for engaging Pyongyang, recognizing its nuclear reality, reducing risks, and pursuing conditions for future denuclearization.

Podcast Episode by Sydney Seiler, Adam Farrar, and Amb. Joseph Yun — May 27, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

Privileged But Powerless

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha and Dr. Jieun Baek discussed her new book, Privileged but Powerless: How North Korean Elite Grievances Reveal the Regime’s Greatest Weakness, and examined how grievances among North Korea’s elites may shape the regime’s future stability and security, while also exploring new approaches to addressing the North Korean threat.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha — May 12, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

Korean Messiah

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha moderated a discussion with Jonathan Cheng on how the surprising ties between the Kim dynasty and American Christianity shaped North Korea’s leadership, and how power, belief, and narrative intersect in the hermit kingdom, influencing dynamics in Northeast Asia and the broader international landscape.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha and Jonathan Cheng — May 5, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

The BTS Homecoming: Does Korea's Soft Power Work?

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha moderated a discussion with Dr. Jinaeng Choi and Timothy Martin to discuss the recent BTS comeback concert, how Korean culture around the world can impact Korea's soft power, how it may influence global audiences, and more. 

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha, Jinaeng Choi , and Timothy Martin — April 8, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

Is the Pivot to Asia Dead?

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha moderated a discussion with Dr. Tom Wright and Dr. Kristi Govella on examining Washington’s failed pivot to Asia, expectations for Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi’s visit to Washington, and its potential impact on the Korean Peninsula, the Indo-Pacific region, and broader regional dynamics.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha — March 20, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

The Four Talent Giants

Mr. Sydney Seiler moderated a discussion with Stanford professor Gi‑Wook Shin about The Four Talent Giants, focusing on how four countries built and sustained economic power while managing demographic decline, brain drain, and geopolitical pressures. Shin highlighted his Four Bs framework—brain train, brain gain, brain circulation, and brain linkage

Podcast Episode by Sydney Seiler and Gi-Wook Shin — March 2, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

Korea Update: NDS, Coupang and Congress

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha moderated a discussion with Adam Farrar and Igor Khrestin on the recent Coupang investigation, the key elements of Trump’s National Defense Strategy, what that means for South Korea and for any future response to North Korean threats, and more.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha — February 13, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast
The Impossible State

North Korea in 2026: Intentions, Realities, and Response

Sydney Seiler, Dr. Patrick Cronin, Rachel Minyoung Lee, and Markus Garlauskas discussed North Korea's direction in 2026 and what to expect from Kim Jong Un in terms of the diplomatic front with Moscow, Beijing, the ROK, the U.S., and more.

Podcast Episode by Sydney Seiler — February 2, 2026

The Impossible State Podcast