North Korea has been a thorn in the side of the US for decades now, as the three former presidents all failed to do anything about the rogue regime. Despite the diplomacy efforts and sanction tactics, the rogue regime still developed nuclear weapons and is now perfecting ballistic missiles to deliver them across the globe.
Ever since Trump took office, however, he’s put forward a much bolder policy toward tyrant Kim Jong-Un, opting to stand strong in the face of his threats and dish out a few of his own. A lot of folks don’t like this, as they see it as instigating a nuclear war. While that’s possible, the reality is that that the longer we wait, the better North Korea’s capabilities become, meaning any future action will be even more costly. Regardless of one’s foreign policy proclivities, a peaceful resolution is wanted by all. However, as one high ranking official reiterated on Tuesday, the window for it is narrow and getting smaller.
As reported at the New York Post, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday he believes war over North Korea’s nuclear weapons is avoidable — but he’s worried and “not yet sure that peace is guaranteed.”
“There is a window of opportunity,” he told a news conference. “That window of opportunity will, in my opinion, hopefully, make the war avoidable, but it is important that we don’t miss the opportunities that windows can provide.”
Guterres’ comments come in the aftermath of the restoration of a military hotline and North Korea’s first formal talks with South Korea in about two years last week.
Another positive sign is that North Korea has agreed to participate in the upcoming Winter Olympics, as well as send a delegation during the event to discuss military matters aimed at reducing frontline tension.
While this is a good first step, Pyongyang reiterated that the talks will not address their nuclear or missile programs, saying that those weapons are primarily targeting the United States, thus not relevant to discussions with South Korea.
Skeptics have downplayed these developments, pointing out that while these talks are good, the elephant in the room is still the nuclear issue, which must be addressed at some point. And when it is, it likely will spoil the mild goodwill that may be built up before then.
Guterres also made clear that de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is the key issue.
“There are some signals of hope,” he said, and it’s extremely important to use them “to make sure that a serious process leading to the peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula takes place.”
The secretary-general expressed concern that sometimes “we look at these symbols of goodwill and positive indications and we forget that the main problem is yet to be solved.”
So, there is a risk that people think, “Oh now things are solved,” he said.
“It’s very important that we have these conversations between the two Koreas. It’s very important that we have these Olympic games. But let’s not forget that the essential problem is yet to be solved — and let’s make sure that the international community commits strongly to that,” Guterres said.
Guterres said that for the UN General Assembly “global anxieties about nuclear weapons are the highest since the Cold War.”
The secretary-general is correct that these temporary warming of relations mean nothing if some kind of move isn’t made on disarming the North Korean regime. At the end of the day, that’s what matters, and so long as the status quo is maintained, North Korea is still a global threat.
Source: New York Post