The growing tensions in North Korea are moving so rapidly it’s hard to keep up; every day there is a new development. Missile testing, threats, subterranean nuclear detonations and international condemnation are just a few things that have been happening. This is not the first time this has happened, but some of the aspects of these recent events show them in a light that makes them seem like more than what we have seen in the past.
In recent days and over the last few weeks, the communist North Korean government began testing long-range missiles and nuclear weapons. Now, of course, in many cases it is not illegal or a breach of protocol for a country to test military weapons. But some of these tests, like the underground nuclear detonation, came without warning.
North Korea has been openly hostile toward neighboring South Korea, and now many countries in the international community are worried about their intentions. This is made especially worrisome by the fact that many of these tests are done covertly and in the face of international condemnation.
Many countries, including the U.S. and China, are attempting to reason with the North Korean government. Needless to say, these efforts have not met with a positive result. The situation is quickly progressing beyond peaceful talks and other measures need to be taken.
China is the North’s main oil supplier and importer of goods. Because of this, China has more leverage, not including armies, tanks and missiles, than any other country.
This is not to say that North Korea should be blackmailed, but if they are not going to participate in the established rules of the international community, then their allies are no longer obligated to continue to trade and import.
The effects of the current situation can be seen across the globe. Now China and Japan are asking for their own nuclear weapons, further prohibiting nuclear proliferation efforts that North Korea is already flouting, in order to protect themselves from the North
Korean threat or to retaliate in case of a strike. The effort of trying to reduce the world’s nuclear stockpile is being negatively impacted by a nation who, potentially, wants to use theirs for offense and not defense.
Other countries striving toward nuclear capability with leaders of questionable intent who are well known for saying strange and controversial things, such as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, for example, will be watching events fold very carefully. How the international community deals with the threats made by North Korea and their open flouting of U.N. policy, if handled poorly, may set a dangerous example for others.
This brings about the question: “Why now?”
It could be another attempt by North Korea, a country without many resources of its own, whose citizens are mostly in poverty and are short on food, to blackmail its neighbors into helping it without actually asking for help. This certainly would not be the first time. However, the aggressive nature of North Korea’s actions, like throwing U.N. inspectors out of their country shortly before beginning to test weapons, says that this is no mere question of blackmail.
Kim Jong-il, the de facto ruler of the North Korean government who is well known for his controversial politics and isolated lifestyle, has not been looking so hot lately. Kim, who is 67 years of age, had a stroke last August and has been looking rather thin in recent photos. Some may say that Kim is aware that his days may be numbered and is looking to make good on old threats before kicking the bucket.
Perhaps North Korea does not yet present an immediate threat, but it is well on its way. Even if the North Korean government does not plan to use its nukes on another country, we cannot allow them to once again bully the international community into giving them aid instead of joining and participating in the community themselves.
The last thing we want to see is Kim Jong-il riding a nuclear bomb into South Korea a la Major Kong in Dr. Strangelove, all because we were too afraid to take appropriate action when it was needed.