North Korea talks Snag...Again
Del Williams
January 10, 2006
As a Westerner I have to wonder about the latest move by North Korea. It seems now they are mad about the possibility of sanctions and vetoes by the U.S.
What is this all about? The average person may not understand that nuclear weapons in the hands of North Korea put South Korea in jeopardy.
North Korea has stalled time and time again on the talks concerning their weapons. They have threatened testing their program if the U.S. did not give in to their demands. The consistent source of concern for them is what the United States can or will do to them since they retreated from the 1970 Nuclear non-proliferation treaty
In his 2002 State of the Union Speech, President Bush said, "Our second goal is to prevent regimes that sponsor terror from threatening America or our friends and allies with weapons of mass destruction. Some of these regimes have been pretty quiet since September the 11th. But we know their true nature. North Korea is a regime arming with missiles and weapons of mass destruction, while starving its citizens." The North Koreans considered the speech as an “act of aggression.”
North Korea Defense Capabilities and their threat to South Korea
North Korea now has the fourth-largest army in the world. It has an estimated 1.2 million armed personnel, compared to about 650,000 in the South. Military spending is estimated at as much as a quarter of GNP, with about 20% of men ages 17-54 in the regular armed forces. North Korean forces have a substantial numerical advantage over the South (between 2 and 3 to 1) in several key categories of offensive weapons--tanks, long-range artillery, and armored personnel carriers.
The North has perhaps the world's second-largest special operations force, designed for insertion behind the lines in wartime. While the North has a relatively impressive fleet of submarines, its surface fleet has a very limited capability. Its air force has twice the number of aircraft as the South, but, except for a few advanced fighters, the North's air force is obsolete. The North deploys the bulk of its forces well forward, along the demilitarized zone (DMZ). Several North Korean military tunnels under the DMZ were discovered in the 1970s.
Over the last several years, North Korea has moved more of its rear-echelon troops to hardened bunkers closer to the DMZ. Given the proximity of Seoul to the DMZ (some 25 miles), South Korean and U.S. forces are likely to have little warning of any attack. The United States and South Korea continue to believe that the U.S. troop presence in South Korea remains an effective deterrent. North Korea’s nuclear weapons program has also been a source of international tension (see below, Reunification Efforts Since 1971; Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula).
In 1953, the Military Armistice Commission (MAC) was created to oversee and enforce the terms of the armistice. Over the past decade, North Korea has sought to dismantle the MAC in a push for a new "peace mechanism" on the peninsula. In April 1994, it declared the MAC void and withdrew its representatives. (North Korea Background notes http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2792.htm)
Condi Rice, Secretary of State on North Korea
NBC News "Meet the Press" (August 8, 2004)
Rice: As to North Korea, we have created the six-party framework in which all of North Korea's neighbors have said to North Korea in a concerted way, "You must give up your nuclear weapons programs in order to be a part of the international community." And that includes China, which has long been North Korea's only benefactor, really, in the international community.
So, yes, these are tough problems. These are problems that developed in the 1990s. These are problems that we have been working on, and we will use many means to try and disrupt these programs.
(Larry King interview May 11, 2005)
KING: ... The new United States ambassador to Japan, Thomas Schieffer, says he believes North Korea has taken preparatory steps to run nuclear tests. You said earlier this week the United States has no intention to attack or invade North Korea. President Bush once told me, you never tip your hand.
Were you tipping your hand there?
RICE: No. I think the North Koreans quite clearly understand that we have a strong deterrent on the Korean peninsula with our strong relationship with South Korea, with our forces that are in the region. I don't think the North Koreans are confused about the United States and our ability to deter any aggression that North Korea might be planning. But the question?
KING: So why did you say that?
RICE: But the question is, would we somehow wish to invade North Korea? Because the North Koreans, in their machine -- their propaganda machine, very often tell the North Korean people that there is a plot to invade North Korea, that America wants to make war on North Korea.
No. The United States wants a peaceful Korean peninsula. We just want a Korean peninsula like, by the way, the Chinese, the Russians, the Japanese, the South Koreans all want; a Korean peninsula in which there -- on which there are no nuclear weapons.
And the reason that we have this problem is that North Korea has insisted on pursuing nuclear weapons programs and a nuclear weapon. And so the entire purpose here is to have a Korean peninsula that is nuclear weapons free. That's what the problem is.
And, Larry, I would be the first to say that North Korea is a terrible regime in terms of the treatment of its people, the starvation that they experienced, the prison labor camps that are there. And we are going to shine on that. This president is never going to stop speaking out about the conditions of people who are trapped in grave circumstances or about the need for reform.
But every situation is different and not every situation requires the use of military force.
KING: If therefore diplomacy is used (ph), would you meet with North Korean officials?
RICE: Well, we've had an experience of bilateral discussions with the North Koreans, in 1994. And what happened was the North Koreans signed an agreement with us, and then they went about violating it practically before the ink was dry. So there's no need to go back down that road.
We do -- well, we do meet with the North Koreans in the context of the six-party talks. We have talked to them in New York, where they have representation. So it is not as if we are without contact with the North Koreans. But we believe that the strongest vehicle by which to deal with the North Korean nuclear program is with all of the parties sitting at the table who have an interest here. It doesn't mean that we don't talk to the North Koreans in the context of those talks.
KING: Are you concerned or hopeful, or both?
RICE: Well, I'm of course concerned, because the North Koreans continue to pursue this nuclear weapons program. But one has to just continue to work diplomatically, and one has to continue to unify the international community around this goal. If we remain united, I believe we can resolve this.
Feb 2005
North Korea will stay away from talks on its nuclear program for an "indefinite period", according to the nation's foreign ministry.
Pyongyang said there was no point in the talks since the US had termed North Korea an "outpost of tyranny".
Various meeting were held with promises made and broken. In September 2005, North Korea wanted to bargain the food of the people. They constantly walk away when they do not get their way. In January they stopped the U.N. from feeding 600,000 people a day in order to pressure other countries to help them fend for themselves.
Dec 20, 2005
North Korea said it plans to boost its nuclear weapons program because of hostile U.S. policies toward the regime.
Notes and Further Information
2002 State of the Union Address:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020129-11.html
North Korea: A Chronology of Events 2002-2004 (Prepared for Congress) This report provides a chronology of events relevant to U.S. relations with North
Korea from October 2002 through December 31, 2004. The chronology includes
significant meetings, events, and statements that shed light on the issues surrounding
North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.
http://www.fas.org/man/crs/RL32743.pdf
What is this all about? The average person may not understand that nuclear weapons in the hands of North Korea put South Korea in jeopardy.
North Korea has stalled time and time again on the talks concerning their weapons. They have threatened testing their program if the U.S. did not give in to their demands. The consistent source of concern for them is what the United States can or will do to them since they retreated from the 1970 Nuclear non-proliferation treaty
In his 2002 State of the Union Speech, President Bush said, "Our second goal is to prevent regimes that sponsor terror from threatening America or our friends and allies with weapons of mass destruction. Some of these regimes have been pretty quiet since September the 11th. But we know their true nature. North Korea is a regime arming with missiles and weapons of mass destruction, while starving its citizens." The North Koreans considered the speech as an “act of aggression.”
North Korea Defense Capabilities and their threat to South Korea
North Korea now has the fourth-largest army in the world. It has an estimated 1.2 million armed personnel, compared to about 650,000 in the South. Military spending is estimated at as much as a quarter of GNP, with about 20% of men ages 17-54 in the regular armed forces. North Korean forces have a substantial numerical advantage over the South (between 2 and 3 to 1) in several key categories of offensive weapons--tanks, long-range artillery, and armored personnel carriers.
The North has perhaps the world's second-largest special operations force, designed for insertion behind the lines in wartime. While the North has a relatively impressive fleet of submarines, its surface fleet has a very limited capability. Its air force has twice the number of aircraft as the South, but, except for a few advanced fighters, the North's air force is obsolete. The North deploys the bulk of its forces well forward, along the demilitarized zone (DMZ). Several North Korean military tunnels under the DMZ were discovered in the 1970s.
Over the last several years, North Korea has moved more of its rear-echelon troops to hardened bunkers closer to the DMZ. Given the proximity of Seoul to the DMZ (some 25 miles), South Korean and U.S. forces are likely to have little warning of any attack. The United States and South Korea continue to believe that the U.S. troop presence in South Korea remains an effective deterrent. North Korea’s nuclear weapons program has also been a source of international tension (see below, Reunification Efforts Since 1971; Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula).
In 1953, the Military Armistice Commission (MAC) was created to oversee and enforce the terms of the armistice. Over the past decade, North Korea has sought to dismantle the MAC in a push for a new "peace mechanism" on the peninsula. In April 1994, it declared the MAC void and withdrew its representatives. (North Korea Background notes http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2792.htm)
Condi Rice, Secretary of State on North Korea
NBC News "Meet the Press" (August 8, 2004)
Rice: As to North Korea, we have created the six-party framework in which all of North Korea's neighbors have said to North Korea in a concerted way, "You must give up your nuclear weapons programs in order to be a part of the international community." And that includes China, which has long been North Korea's only benefactor, really, in the international community.
So, yes, these are tough problems. These are problems that developed in the 1990s. These are problems that we have been working on, and we will use many means to try and disrupt these programs.
(Larry King interview May 11, 2005)
KING: ... The new United States ambassador to Japan, Thomas Schieffer, says he believes North Korea has taken preparatory steps to run nuclear tests. You said earlier this week the United States has no intention to attack or invade North Korea. President Bush once told me, you never tip your hand.
Were you tipping your hand there?
RICE: No. I think the North Koreans quite clearly understand that we have a strong deterrent on the Korean peninsula with our strong relationship with South Korea, with our forces that are in the region. I don't think the North Koreans are confused about the United States and our ability to deter any aggression that North Korea might be planning. But the question?
KING: So why did you say that?
RICE: But the question is, would we somehow wish to invade North Korea? Because the North Koreans, in their machine -- their propaganda machine, very often tell the North Korean people that there is a plot to invade North Korea, that America wants to make war on North Korea.
No. The United States wants a peaceful Korean peninsula. We just want a Korean peninsula like, by the way, the Chinese, the Russians, the Japanese, the South Koreans all want; a Korean peninsula in which there -- on which there are no nuclear weapons.
And the reason that we have this problem is that North Korea has insisted on pursuing nuclear weapons programs and a nuclear weapon. And so the entire purpose here is to have a Korean peninsula that is nuclear weapons free. That's what the problem is.
And, Larry, I would be the first to say that North Korea is a terrible regime in terms of the treatment of its people, the starvation that they experienced, the prison labor camps that are there. And we are going to shine on that. This president is never going to stop speaking out about the conditions of people who are trapped in grave circumstances or about the need for reform.
But every situation is different and not every situation requires the use of military force.
KING: If therefore diplomacy is used (ph), would you meet with North Korean officials?
RICE: Well, we've had an experience of bilateral discussions with the North Koreans, in 1994. And what happened was the North Koreans signed an agreement with us, and then they went about violating it practically before the ink was dry. So there's no need to go back down that road.
We do -- well, we do meet with the North Koreans in the context of the six-party talks. We have talked to them in New York, where they have representation. So it is not as if we are without contact with the North Koreans. But we believe that the strongest vehicle by which to deal with the North Korean nuclear program is with all of the parties sitting at the table who have an interest here. It doesn't mean that we don't talk to the North Koreans in the context of those talks.
KING: Are you concerned or hopeful, or both?
RICE: Well, I'm of course concerned, because the North Koreans continue to pursue this nuclear weapons program. But one has to just continue to work diplomatically, and one has to continue to unify the international community around this goal. If we remain united, I believe we can resolve this.
Feb 2005
North Korea will stay away from talks on its nuclear program for an "indefinite period", according to the nation's foreign ministry.
Pyongyang said there was no point in the talks since the US had termed North Korea an "outpost of tyranny".
Various meeting were held with promises made and broken. In September 2005, North Korea wanted to bargain the food of the people. They constantly walk away when they do not get their way. In January they stopped the U.N. from feeding 600,000 people a day in order to pressure other countries to help them fend for themselves.
Dec 20, 2005
North Korea said it plans to boost its nuclear weapons program because of hostile U.S. policies toward the regime.
Notes and Further Information
2002 State of the Union Address:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020129-11.html
North Korea: A Chronology of Events 2002-2004 (Prepared for Congress) This report provides a chronology of events relevant to U.S. relations with North
Korea from October 2002 through December 31, 2004. The chronology includes
significant meetings, events, and statements that shed light on the issues surrounding
North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.
http://www.fas.org/man/crs/RL32743.pdf
Print
Email
