Issues Under Fire: Can "45's" Tweets Goad Kim Into War?
We are entering a new and most dangerous stage of the conflict between North Korea and the United States. And make no mistake about this conflict, it is between the United States and North Korea. The Trump administration is desperately trying to frame Kim Jong-un as an existential threat to the entire world, but the facts would suggest otherwise. Kim Jong-un has followed the same path as his father Kim Jong-il and grandfather, Kim-ll-sung. Kim Jong-un has invested every North Korean won he could scheme, scam or steal on nuclear defense. These are the actions of a nation living in fear. North Korea lives in constant fear of the United States and only the United States.
When the United States demands that North Korea give up what it feels is the only deterrent to U.S. aggression, the entire nation is reminded of the millions of lives lost in the last military engagement with the United States. Although 21 countries of the United Nations contributed to that war effort, the United States provided 88% of the U.N.'s military personnel. America was then and remains to this day, the face of North Korea's enemy. Saturday, the Trump administration ordered the U.S. Air Force to fly B-1 bombers, escorted by F-15 jets, off North Korea's coast in a so called "show of force."
Unfortunately, the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea views the United State's show of force as an act of intimidation. When the United States refuses to halt military exercises in its backyard to practice how it will attack North Korea, Kim Jong-un views this as an act of provocation. And when the United States continue to ratchet up international sanctions to cripple North Korea's economy, they view that as an act of economic warfare. So, when "45" threatened to totally destroy North Korea at the U.N. General Assembly and followed that threat with a tweet indicating North Korea's leadership wouldn't be around much longer, Kim Jong-un took that as a declaration of war against his nation. And frankly, how could Kim see it any other way?
The world has been placed on notice that North Korea will not denuclearize its defense. They've resisted every effort by every U.S. administration and every U.N. resolution to maintain North Korea's sovereign right to develop, maintain and use nuclear weapons to defend itself like any other nuclear armed nation has. If war has to be a consequence for taking this stance, then war it will be. If the United States is determined to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, then war it will be. Yes, we are finally there. Yesterday, North Korea's foreign minister RI Yong Ho said North Korea will be justified in shooting down U.S. strategic bombers, whether they fly into North Korean airspace or not.
Bottom line: While we may be still in the name calling phase of this dispute, the threats are not veiled, the language is harsh and definite. If you do this, we will do that. This could be the showdown the world has been trying to avoid for decades. The only mystery left in this story, is who fires first. Podcast below.
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