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North Korea Nuclear Watch: North Korea Threatens War Against the United States
North Korean military officers (L) and a South Korean soldier (front) at the border village of Panmunjom. A defiant North Korea has warned that it would regard harsh sanctions over its nuclear test as a declaration of war and threatened further trials if the United States kept up its pressure.
North Korea warned on Wednesday that increased U.S. pressure over the regime’s reported nuclear test could be considered an act of war, and South Korea suggested it would build up its conventional arsenal to deal with its belligerent neighbor.
North Korea’s No. 2 leader threatened to conduct more nuclear tests if the United States continued what he called its “hostile attitude.”
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States would not attack North Korea, rejecting a suggestion that Pyongyang may feel it needs nuclear weapons to stave off an
Iraq-style U.S. invasion.North Korea is rogue regime that will not listen to any rational reassurance. If they wish WAR Kim Jong-Il will make an excuse. Kim has quite a nuclear extortion racket:
“Pay me off and guarantee the survival of my impoverished, criminal regime, or I’ll nuke my economic and human hostages and cost all of you more in lives and money than the bribes and media kowtow I demand.”
And what about China? What will be their role in reining in Kim?
In its first formal statement since the test, North Korea said it could respond to U.S. pressure with “physical” measures.
“If the U.S. keeps pestering us and increases pressure, we will regard it as a declaration of war and will take a series of physical corresponding measures,” the North’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency. The statement didn’t specify what those measures could be.
The United Nations Security Council MUST impose harsh sanctions including a tight land and maritime EMBARGO or QUARANTINE.
If North Korea wishes WAR, then better NOW before they proliferate their nuclear materials to other rogue or terrorist organizations/regimes.
But, will Kim Jong-Il provoke Japan or the United States?
Will China allow a land embargo?
Stay tuned…..
South Korean conservative activists hold placards during an anti-North Korea rally in Seoul.
Previous:
Michael Ramirez on Nuclear North Korea
North Korea Nuclear Watch: McCain vs. Clinton
North Korea Nuclear Watch: Kick North Korea Out of the United Nations?
North Korea Nuclear Watch: United States Proposes United Nations Sanctions Against North Korea
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, UnitedNations
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Michael Ramirez on Nuclear North Korea
Austin Bay has some great thoughts on North Korea and their nuclear test(s) with this post:
More thoughts on NoKo: Time to hermetically seal the Hermit Kingdom
China needs to propose a land and maritime embargo of North Korea, one that hermetically seals the Hermit Kingdom’s borders. And then help enforce it.
Indeed……
Technorati Tags: MichaelRamirez, NorthKorea
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North Korea Nuclear Watch: McCain vs. Clinton
UPDATECaptain Ed has a post from Senator McCain
Captains Quarters: Guest Post: Senator John McCain On North KoreaThis isn’t just about North Korea. Iran is watching this test of the Council’s will, and our decisions will surely influence their response to demands that they cease their nuclear program. Now, we must, at long last, stop reinforcing failure with failure.
READ IT ALL
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. speaks during a campaign stop for Republican senate candidate Mike Bouchard in Southfield, Mich., Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2006. McCain voiced support for tough U.N. sanctions against North Korea in response to North Korea’s reported test of a nuclear device.
AP: McCain criticizes Clinton on N. Korea
Republican Sen. John McCain on Tuesday accused former President Clinton, the husband of his potential 2008 White House rival, of failing to act in the 1990s to stop North Korea from developing nuclear weapons.
“I would remind Senator (Hillary) Clinton and other Democrats critical of the Bush administration’s policies that the framework agreement her husband’s administration negotiated was a failure,” McCain said at a news conference after a campaign appearance for Republican Senate candidate Mike Bouchard.
“The Koreans received millions and millions in energy assistance. They’ve diverted millions of dollars of food assistance to their military,” he said.
Flap wonders if Slick will attempt to get McCain slimed with the Clintonesq politics of personal destruction now that Clinton has been duly ass-whipped because of his pathetic North Korean foreign policy. McCain is NO Chris Wallace.
Democrats have argued President Clinton presented his successor with a framework for dealing with North Korea and the Republican fumbled the opportunity. In October 2000, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright made a groundbreaking visit to Pyongyang to explore a missile deal with Chairman Kim Jong Il. There was even talk of a visit by President Clinton.
The initial breakthrough occurred in October 1994 when U.S. negotiators persuaded North Korea to freeze its nuclear program, with onsite monitoring by U.N. inspectors. In exchange, the United States, with input from South Korea and Japan, promised major steps to ease North Korea’s acute energy shortage.
These commitments were inherited by the Bush administration, which made clear almost from the outset that it believed the Clinton policy ignored key elements of North Korea’s activities, especially the threat posed by the hundreds of thousands of troops on permanent duty along the Demilitarized Zone with South Korea.
McCain vs Clinton and an interesting prospective race between Hillary and McCain in 2008. Will Hillary run away from husband bill’s North Korean legacy?
Doubtful – Even if the policy is WRONG.
The Democrats will love to criticize Bush for this rogue nuclear test but who was it that appeased Kim Jong -Il and delayed the Missile Defense Agency?
Well, it was Bill Clinton.
Said McCain: “Prior to the agreement, every single time the Clinton Administration warned the Koreans not to do something — not to kick out the IAEA inspectors, not to remove the fuel rods from their reactor — they did it. And they were rewarded every single time by the Clinton Administration with further talks. We had a carrots and no sticks policy that only encouraged bad behavior. When one carrot didn’t work, we offered another.”
Stay tuned for Slick Willy’s response……..
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North Korea Nuclear Watch: Kick North Korea Out of the United Nations?
North Korea Nuclear Watch: United States Proposes United Nations Sanctions Against North Korea
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, UnitedNations
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North Korea Nuclear Watch: Kick North Korea Out of the United Nations?
The P’unggye-yok nuclear test site. See more photos at Global Crisis Watch.
The Rosett Report (Via Austin Bay): Expel North Korea
Well, here we are. North Korea says it has conducted a nuclear test. The moment is nigh for the United Nations to follow through on its threat to retaliate with “unspecified action.â€
In the UN arsenal of inanities, that could of course mean anything from the Security Council expressing “deep concern†to the World Food Progam doubling its 2006 allocation of $102 million worth of aid — on Kim Jong Il’s terms — for “transitional assistance.â€
But seriously, if the UN has any interest whatsoever in addressing the clear and present danger of a nuclear-bomb-brandishing North Korea, there is something the UN could do, pronto. It could expel North Korea.
Kim Jong-Il doesn’t give a DAMN about the United Nations and neither should the United States in ultimately dealing with North Korea’s nuclear threat.
Kick them out?
NOPE
DIALOGUE in the United Nations as constrained/meaningless as it may be is better than UNINTENDED DEATH and DESTRUCTION.
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North Korea Nuclear Watch: United States Proposes United Nations Sanctions Against North Korea
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, UnitedNations
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North Korea Nuclear Watch: United States Proposes United Nations Sanctions Against North Korea
John Bolton — the United States ambassador to the United Nations — arrives at the Security Council in New York. The UN Security Council has begun an emergency session to discuss North Korea’s nuclear weapon test and the nomination of South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon as the new UN secretary general.
AP: U.S. proposes sanctions against N. Korea
The United States proposed stringent U.N. sanctions Monday against North Korea, including a trade ban on military and luxury items, the power to inspect all cargo entering or leaving the country, and freezing assets connected with its weapons programs.
Security council members earlier condemned North Korea for its reported nuclear test, demanding at an emergency meeting that the communist nation return to six-party talks on its weapons program, U.N. ambassadors said.
The U.S. proposals were among several ideas for a Security Council resolution that the United States shared with council diplomats after North Korea reported it conducted a nuclear test. A copy of the document was obtained by The Associated Press.
The document says that the United States wants the resolution to fall under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter, which deals explicitly with threats to international peace and security, as well as acts of aggression. Chapter 7 grants the council the authority to impose a range of measures that include breaking diplomatic ties and imposing economic and military sanctions to taking military action.
The NUTS of the UNSC sanctions:
• Prohibit trade in materials that could be used to make or deliver weapons of mass destruction.
• Require states make sure that North Korea not use their territory or entities for proliferation or illicit activities. Financial transactions that North Korea could use to support those programs would also be banned.
• States would have to freeze all assets related to North Korea’s weapons and missile programs, as well as any other illicit activities it conducts.
• Authorize inspection of all cargo to and from North Korea to limit proliferation.
• Ban trade with North Korea in luxury goods and military items
Flap’s recommendation:
EMBARGO
Squeeze Kim Jong-Il until he PRUNES UP.
Stay tuned…….
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, UnitedNations
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Iran Nuclear Watch: Iranian Scientists Present at North Korea Nuclear Test
Update: Drudge is reporting:U.S. proposals obtained by AP for sanctions against North Korea include a trade ban on military and luxury items, the power to inspect all cargo, and freezing assets connected with Pyongyang’s weapons programs…
Map locating Hwadaeri in North Korea — the site of the country’s first nuclear weapons test.
NewsMax: Source: Iran Scientists Present at North Korea Nuclear Test
Now that North Korea has defied the international community and has conducted a nuclear test late Sunday night (U.S. EDT), sanctions appear to be the order of the day.
A senior official from the office of U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton confirms that the U.S. State Department will begin work Monday on a draft Security Council resolution to impose new sanctions on North Korea.
Another potential problem facing the White House, say U.N. sources, is the belief that Iranian scientists may have been present at the North Korean nuclear test.
North Korea and Iran have been known to be sharing ballistic missile and nuclear technology for some time.
Iran has the oil dollars and North Korea has the technology via China and Pakistan.
Do you think there will be a DEAL?
YUP – already has happened……
The “POINT OF NO RETURN” for Iran’s nuclear program is not far into the future.
The United States with or without the United Nations Security Council will EMBARGO North Korean ports.
Stay tuned…..
Iran ‘s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks during the 61st United Nations (UN) General Assembly in September 2006. Ahmadinejad has vowed to impose retaliatory sanctions on world powers if the UN Security Council carries out threats to penalise Iran over its nuclear programme.
Previous:
Iran Nuclear Watch: P-5-Plus-1 To Pursue Sanctions Against Iran
Iran Nuclear Watch: U.K. Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett – Iran-EU Nuclear Talks Have FAILED
Iran Nuclear Watch: Russia Continues to Oppose Iran Sanctions
Iran Nuclear Watch: EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana – No Progress with Iran
The Natanz uranium enrichment complex in Natanz is pictured in this January 2, 2006 satellite image.
Technorati Tags: Iran, Ahmadinejad
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North Korea Watch: North Korea Reports Successful Nuclear Test
AP: North Korea Says Nuclear Test Successful
North Korea said Monday it has performed its first-ever nuclear weapons test. The country’s official Korean Central News Agency said the test was performed successfully and there was no radioactive leakage from the site.
“The nuclear test is a historic event that brought happiness to the our military and people,” KCNA said.
So, what is next?
United Nations Security Council sanctions, the nuclear militarization of Japan, and a new Cold War with the Axis of Evil.
Stay tuned…..
Previous:
Michael Ramirez on North Korea’s Nuclear Test
North Korea Watch: North Korea Will Conduct a Nuclear Test
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, KimJong-Il
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Michael Ramirez on North Korea’s Nuclear Test
AP: N. Korea urged to abandon atomic weapons
With speculation mounting of a North Korean nuclear test as early as this weekend, a unanimous U.N. Security Council urged the secretive, communist nation Friday to abandon all atomic weapons as it promised last year and cancel plans to detonate a device. Japan hinted the North could face sanctions or possible military action.
With tensions rising, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il met hundreds of his top military commanders and urged them to bolster the nation’s defenses, as officers cheered, “Fight at the cost of our lives!” the North’s official Korean Central News Agency reported earlier Friday.
A North Korea expert in China, the North’s closest ally, said only the removal of American economic sanctions against Pyongyang could dissuade the country from carrying out a nuclear test.
“North Korea has already made a decision to carry out a test,” said Li Dunqiu, of China’s State Council Development Research Center, a Cabinet-level think tank. But “if the U.S. removes sanctions … then tensions can be eased. Otherwise launching a nuclear test is unavoidable for North Korea.”
The North Koreans and Kim Jong-Il must perceive the United States as WEAK.
They have UNDERESTIMATED the United States and our allies.
Technorati Tags: MichaelRamirez, NorthKorea, KimJongIl, China
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North Korea Watch: North Korea Will Conduct a Nuclear Test
Reuters: North Korea says will conduct nuclear test
An increasingly isolated North Korea said on Tuesday it would conduct its first-ever nuclear test, blaming a U.S. “threat of nuclear war and sanctions” for forcing its hand.
The statement by North Korea’s foreign ministry, carried on the official KCNA news agency, was condemned by neighboring Japan as “unacceptable” and caused South Korea to increase its security alert.
The announcement confirms weeks of rumors the communist state was planning a test and came amid increasingly sour relations with the outside world after it test-fired missiles in July.
“The U.S. extreme threat of a nuclear war and sanctions and pressure compel the DPRK (North Korea) to conduct a nuclear test, an essential process for bolstering nuclear deterrent, as a corresponding measure for defense,” the statement said.
But it added that North Korea would never use nuclear weapons first and would “do its utmost to realize the denuclearization of the peninsula and give impetus to the world-wide nuclear disarmament and the ultimate elimination of nuclear weapons.”
YAWN….bluster and threats from Kim Jong-Il.
China and Pyongyang are poking the United States in the eye prior to the November elections.
United Nations ambassador John Bolton calls for a UNSC response.
Diplomatic efforts will be fruitless as the United States bolsters its missile defense and militarizes Japan.
Stay tuned……
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, KimJong-Il
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North Korea Watch: Iran Working With North Korea on Developing Long-Range Missiles
A visitor walks by displays of North Korea’s Scud-B missile (C) and other South Korean missiles at the Korea War Memorial Museum in Seoul in July 2006. North Korea has been building new underground missile bases along its east coast, targeting Japan and US military facilities in Japan, a report said.
Reuters: Iran working with N.Korea on missiles: InstituteNorth Korea has been working closely with Iran to develop its long-range ballistic missiles, possibly using Chinese technology, and is building large bases to prepare for their deployment, a South Korean state-run think tank said.
Communist North Korea is also building new sites near the Demilitarized Zone border for short-range missiles and is deploying missiles with improved precision that can strike most of Japan, the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security (IFANS) said in a report.
“The development of Taepodong-2 is conducted jointly with Iran, and it is possible China’s technology is used in the development of the Taepodong-2 engine,” said the IFANS report, which Reuters obtained on Thursday.
The collaboration is part of an international network, including Pakistan, that made it possible for the impoverished North to develop and deploy missiles despite scarce resources and limited testing, the study said.
It looks like Iran is trading their missile technology and oil dollars to North Korea in return for North Korea’s expertise on the manufacture of a nuclear warhead for the joint NorthKorea-Iranian Axis of Evil ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile). And China is helping both of them.
Fancy that……..
The United States should step up its deployment of missile defenses in the United States, Europe and Japan and contemplate arming Japan as a nuclear military deterrent to North Korea.
Further isolating North Korea diplomatically will do no good if they can skirt around sanctions by trading with Iran and China.
North Korean soldiers perform during the Arirang Mass Games at the May Day stadium in Pyongyang in this October 10, 2005 file photograph. North Korea has been working closely with Iran to develop its long-range ballistic missiles, possibly using Chinese technology, and is building large bases to prepare for their deployment, a South Korean state-run think tank said.
Stay tuned……
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North Korea Watch: United Nations Security Council Votes for Limited Sanctions on North Korea
North Korea Watch: United States and Japan Press for United Nations Security Council Vote
North Korea Watch: Japan Demands Vote on United Nations Resolution
North Korea Watch: China and Russia Introduce Rival “Weakened†North Korea Resolution
North Korea Watch: North Korea Failing to Respond to China’s Diplomatic Efforts
North Korea Watch: North Korea States Conditions for Return to Talks
North Korea Watch: United Nations Security Council Vote on North Korea Postponed
North Korea Watch: China Asks Japan to Postpone United Nations Resolution
North Korea Watch: Japan Considers Pre-emptive Strike Against North Korea
Technorati Tags: NorthKorea, KimJongIl, MissileDefenseAgency