“If the U.S. imperialists start another war, the army and people of Korea will … wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all,” says the North Korean Central News Agency on reports that a US destroyer was following the Kang Nam, a N. Korean vessel transporting illicit weapons to Myanmar, against United Nations sanctions. Interestingly, the ship following the Kang Nam is the USS John S. McCain.
One of the accusations that North Korea is throwing out at the US is that wenintend to start another Korean War. In fact, if the McCain stops to inspect the Kang Nam, according to the recent Security Council resolution for all members, the N. K.’s have said that they will consider that act a declaration of war.
It is expected that the North Koreans are going to test short to medium missiles, which could cover from 100 to 350 miles… certainly enough to do some destruction around allies like Japan and, of course, South Korea. They will also be trading with Myanmar’s military government, which has bought weapons from them in the past.
Meanwhile, China, Russia and South Korea are trying to get North Korea back to the diplomatic table for talks on disarming. These broke up some time ago and Kim Jong Il doesn’t seem interested in rejoining them.
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I’m glad John McCain is watchman of the high seas near Korea and nowhere near Iran of course.
Collision course between the Korea’s was due to South Korea’s new man, conservative Lee Myuong-bak, who stopped the thaw of his predecessor. The powerplay of the communists has more to do with internal politics than an act of agression towards the rest of the world. The U.S. is acting to protect Hawaii from a missile attack by accident or on purpose.
Involvement of the U.S. Navy at the dawn of a new war is nothing new … Bay of Pigs, Cuban crisis, Gulf of Tonkin, USS Liberty, Persian Gulf and East China Sea?
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."Thanks Oui – very interesting links. You always find such great info.
I think Kim Jong Il is starting to believe his own press releases, which is always dangerous where nuclear weapons are concerned.
I actually spent some time last night thinking about what the plausible US responses to a North Korean nuclear attack would be. I couldn’t come up with any believable scenario that didn’t involve a nuclear counterstrike substantial enough to destroy North Korea as a functioning state.
That’s the problem with nuclear weapons, and one which, to our mutual peril, I don’t think Kim Jong Il understands. You don’t own nuclear weapons in order to use them; you own them so no one else will use them against you. First strikes are against the rules of the nuclear game and amount to suicide, especially for a state that might have a handful of operational warheads against a state that has many thousands and the delivery vehicles to drop them anywhere on earth inside of thirty minutes.
I think I’ve seen this movie before. Whenever NK perceives even an implied threat from outside, their response is always to puff up like a toad and hold their breath til somebody else blinks. That has worked for them so well up til now it’s hard to tell what they might do if somebody called their bluff. Especially now with Kim Jong Il obviously in poor health and whatever uncertainties there might be about his successor.
On a personal note, Navy Son was stationed on the Johnny Mac for four years. He rotated stateside last fall. I really hate that he’s missing all the fun. Not.
I think North Korea pouts when people ignore them.
We have yet to recognize the Democratic Republic of Korea more than enough to get them to accept a truce they broke occasionally until they abrogated it last month.
We’d pay them no attention had the Soviets not armed them with nukes.