Will North Korea’s Nuclear Weapons Help Prevent War?

By: PIBtech on 10:00 / comment : 0 commentary -- north korea

B. Z. Khasru, South China Morning Post: How North Korea’s nuclear weapons are helping to prevent war

B. Z. Khasru says North Korea is following the lead of other small nations threatened by foes with superior military might. Kim Jong-un’s gamble might just pay off – if China can live with a nuclear neighbour

Atomic bombs are proving to be blessings for small nations that face enemies with far superior conventional and nuclear forces. This is especially true of North Korea, which expects to reap nuclear peace dividends, as fiery rhetoric gives way to cool heads.

Over the past 20 years, nuclear weapons have prevented at least three potentially big wars: between India and Pakistan, between Russia and Nato, and between the US and North Korea – as well as China by extension.

Nuclear bombs have also helped avoid major confrontations between Israelis and Arabs as well as Iranians. If more small countries had nukes, countless lives possibly could have been saved.

If Afghanistan had atomic bombs, for example, Afghans could have avoided the 40 years of mayhem since the Soviet Union’s invasion of their country in 1978. If Iraq had a nuclear arsenal, one million Iraqi lives and some 5,000 American lives could have been saved.

Nukes are, in fact, the chief deterrent to all-out war.

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WNU Editor: B. Z. Khasru believes nuclear weapons will restrain Kim Jong-Un and stop his adversaries from having him overthrown. I see the opposite .... nuclear weapons with a delivery system will embolden him, and it will force the major powers to make decisions that carry great risks to everyone in the region.

North Korea's Goal Has Never Changed Since The End Of The Korean War: Invade And Conquer South Korea

By: PIBtech on 21:00 / comment : 0 commentary -- north korea

WNU Editor: The forceful reunification of the Korean peninsula has always been the goal of the North Korean government .... and that policy goal has not changed since the end of the Korean War. What has always stopped the North from accomplishing their goals is the U.S. presence in South Korea, and its security guarantees to its people. Removal of U.S. forces, and the rescinding of U.S. security guarantees .... now that will change the dynamics on the Korean peninsula completely .... and that is North Korea's priority. And there is a precedent to this North Korean strategy .... and one only has to look at the Vietnam war, and what happened when U.S. military forces left and the U.S. government abandoned its support of the South Vietnamese government. I am sure that the rulers of North Korea have always dreamed of repeating history .... to do what the North Vietnamese did to South Vietnam .... get the U.S. out, and then wage a war to unify the people using nationalism as your driving force. Fortunately for all .... the North Koreans always lacked the means to convince the Americans to leave .... and South Korea is not South Vietnam. But what has kept the armistice for the past 65 years may now be changing .... nuclear weapons and the perception that Kim Jong-Un can now strike the U.S. mainland has given the North Koreans a lot leverage .... leverage that I am sure they will be using (if not already).

We are now entering dangerous territory .... and what is frustrating is that this has been predicted by many for years. And as to who should we blame for all of this  .... the list is long and many. But I do have a special place of blame on past U.S. administrations .... they had the power to change the region .... unfortunately .... there was never any real political will in Washington to make the hard decisions to stop North Korea's march to develop and deploy nuclear weapons. Economic inducements and promises of aid (that was only given sporadically) have not (and will not) work in changing North Korean policy. What should have been done in the past .... is what is being done now. President Trump's strategy of imposing across the board sanctions on the North Korean regime should have been employed years ago .... especially when China was vulnerable to U.S. economic pressure, and Russia was too weak to stand-up to the U.S.. This may not have changed the North Korean regime's strategic objectives .... but it would have starved its nuclear and missile program for years. Why was this not done is a question that I am sure that future historians will talk about .... but for now .... the options on what to do are all terrible. On a side note .... this is a must read .... Be afraid, be very afraid: North Korea’s long-term strategy (Bradley K Martin, Asia Times).

Why Did North Korean Leader Kim Jong-Un Agree To Have Talks With South Korea?

By: PIBtech on 18:00 / comment : 0 commentary -- north korea

Peter Apps, Reuters: Why Kim Jong Un wanted the Korea talks

Last year Kim Jong Un shocked the world with the unexpected speed of his nuclear missile development, his brutal crackdown on apparent rivals and suspicions that he ordered the assassination of his half-brother with a chemical nerve agent. This year, the North Korean leader is opening January with a diplomatic offensive – but that doesn’t mean a change of strategy.

North Korean officials met their southern counterparts on Tuesday for the first such talks in two years. The outcome was an agreement to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics being hosted by South Korea next month as well as to hold military-to-military talks.

Openness to dialogue is, of course, a mildly positive signal. None of that, however, means North Korea has any intention of slowing its drive for evermore powerful nuclear missiles and warheads, specifically those that would allow it to hit the United States. Instead, Pyongyang appears to be pursuing a deliberate and increasingly successful strategy to drive a wedge between Washington and South Korea.

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WNU Editor: We know that North Korea is not going to give up its nuclear and missile programs .... so why the decision to enter talks anywayP The answer is to buy time, stop the momentum for more sanctions, and to test how strong is the U.S. - South Korean relationship. But the real question that should be asked is .... why did South Korea push to have these talks (peace during the Olympics?), and what was the price for the North Koreans to come and sit at the table.