And that looks to be just like what North Korea's doing. After yesterday's missile tests (now we know where Phantom Fireworks gets their stocks...) and all the attention THEY'RE getting, this little story comes as little to no surprise.
Korea - Strategy PageI've heard chronic malnutrition can cause psychological problems - but this is a new one.July 5, 2006: While everyone's attention was focused on North Korean missiles, the real story is the North Korean economy. It continues to fall apart, and more North Koreans are unhappy about that. Worse yet, more North Koreans are finding out how badly they have been screwed by their leaders. Meanwhile, North Korean officials engage in even more bizarre behavior. For example, food and fuel supplies sent to North Korea have been halted, not to force North Korea to stop missile tests or participate in peace talks, but to return the Chinese trains the aid was carried in on. In the last few weeks, the North Koreans have just kept the trains, sending the Chinese crews back across the border. North Korea just ignores Chinese demands that the trains be returned, and insists that the trains are part of the aid program.
The Chinese have tried to talk the North Koreans out of these pointless fantasies, and for their trouble they have their trains stolen. How do you negotiate under these conditions? No one knows.If I, as the monomaniacal leader of a certain country (cough-NorthKorea-cough) were dependent on the good will of a certain neighboring country (cough-China-cough) for food and fuel, I'd have a hard time justifying to myself wholesale theft of their rolling stock. Apparently such a thing doesn't concern the folks in NK.
And it should. How long will China be willing to send trains one-way before they start asking (in the politest of terms, no doubt) for their property back?
J.
Comments (4)
You know, for all those people saying 'You broke Iraq now you have to fix it', I hear exactly ZERO of them saying the same thing about China and North Korea. China *wanted* a North Korea enough to send men and supplies to fight for it... ok... it is THEIR problem now.
The diplomatic niceties should be behind the scenes and something along these lines: either clean up North Korea or we will support South Korea, Japan and Taiwan having nuclear weapons.... your choice, clean it up or watch the neighborhood go nuclear.
Of course that requires a *real* foreign policy, of which this Administration is lacking there as in some few other areas, like a domestic policy. They don't appear to have a National Security policy, either, come to think of it... are they *already* in time-marking mode until 2008?
Posted by ajacksonian | July 5, 2006 5:58 PM
Posted on July 5, 2006 17:58
Ah, but it's only if the US can be blamed that the US has to fix it. At this point, I'd imagine some of the Chinese leaders are thinking rather bad things about the choices of their ancestors, because now they're stuck with a (possibly) nuke-capable nutcase and a country where sanity (in the form of disagreement with De(a)r Leader is grounds for being jailed and/or disappeared.
Re the 'real' foreign policy - I don't think Bush has done all that badly. It's not like we've got a lot of experience dealing with a rabidly insane nuclear-capable state, after all. Even the USSR realized that if push came to shove the cost would be a lot more than they could bear, and thus refrained. But when you've got pretty much jack shit in the first place, and you don't much care about how it ends up, and see your people as disposable in the pursuit of your whims, where's the percentage in showing any sort of restraint?
J.
Posted by JLawson | July 5, 2006 11:30 PM
Posted on July 5, 2006 23:30
For me its our Friends and Allies that we should be backing... Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. China would not like a suddenly nuclear neighborhood as it would ruin all the glory of a million man army into so much vapor. And I do believe that they have sent diplomats to NoKo to make Mr. Kim's ears go red... and, if he reacts as he usually does, will give them a dressing down and some number of threats. He really does think he can get away with these things... and China seethes slowly... Note the lack of NoKo defenses pointing NORTH.
China can be handed this problem and it is zero skin off of our nose and we can lay the complete and utter blame on China's plate.
Calling Retief!
Mr. Jaime Retief! The Diplomatic Corps needs you today...
Posted by ajacksonian | July 10, 2006 6:32 PM
Posted on July 10, 2006 18:32
Closest thing we've got is Condi, I think. She seems to be doing a fairly good job...
J.
Posted by JLawson | July 10, 2006 10:44 PM
Posted on July 10, 2006 22:44