North korea....

[Rustic]

is bluffing. Like usual

North Korean Nuclear Test Draws U.S. Warning of ‘Massive Military Response’

 

[waltky]

Tryin' to gain Chinese & Russian support against No. Korea...

U.S. Weakens Resolution on North Korea to Gain Chinese and Russian Support
11 Sept.`17 — The Trump administration has backed away from some of the most stringent penalties it had sought to impose on North Korea, in an apparent effort to draw Russian and Chinese backing for a new raft of sanctions over the country’s nuclear weapons advances.

Whether the administration will garner the support of Moscow and Beijing when the new sanctions come up for a vote Monday evening at the United Nations Security Council remains to be seen. More important, it is wholly unclear whether additional sanctions will persuade Pyongyang to halt its nuclear and ballistic missile tests. The North Korean regime has pushed ahead with its nuclear weapons program, despite increasingly tougher sanctions in recent years. Just a week ago the North tested its most powerful nuclear device.

The American ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki R. Haley, reacted to that test by calling for a broad range of sanctions, including a cutoff of all oil supplies, in a new Security Council resolution. Those demands were toned down in negotiations that followed with her Russian and Chinese counterparts. Late Sunday night, after a series of closed-door meetings, a revised draft emerged, setting a cap on oil exports to North Korea, but not blocking them altogether.

Bridges over the Yalu River connecting North Korea and China. A new proposal by the United Nations Security Council sets a cap on oil exports​

The resolution asks countries around the world to inspect ships going in and out of North Korea’s ports (a provision authorized by the Security Council in 2009) but does not authorize the use of force for ships that do not comply, as the Trump administration had originally proposed. The resolution also requires those inspections to be done with the consent of the countries where the ships are registered, which opens the door to violations. The original language proposed by the United States would have empowered American forces to interdict ships suspected of carrying weapons material or fuel into North Korea and to use “all necessary measures” to enforce compliance.

Nor does the resolution impose a travel ban or asset freeze on the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, as the original American draft had set out. And the new measure dilutes the original language that would have banned the import of North Korean laborers altogether, saying that countries should not provide work authorization papers unless necessary for humanitarian assistance or denuclearization. The weakened language was a nod to Russia, a big user of imported North Korean labor.

MORE

 

[whitehall]

"Give 'em hell" Harry Truman couldn't even bring the fledgling post WW2 Chinese government aboard when he issued an executive order that sent American Troops to Korea. Truman's aging WW1 veteran General must have had a senior citizen moment when he sent American Troops on his ego trip to "piss in the Yalu River" after N.K. was defeated. China warned against approaching the Yalu River and Truman and MacArthur disregarded the warning and the U.S. managed to grasp defeat from the jaws of victory. We had to live with Truman and MacArthur's negligence for sixty years but today we have a historic deal brought about by President Trump that brings the world, including China and Russia aboard with the USA to sanction North Korea. Well done President Trump.

 

[waltky]

Granny says the Donald needs to smack Rocket Boy on his fat head...

US Hopes New, Tougher Sanctions Will Stop N. Korea Weapons Development
September 21, 2017 — The United States on Thursday further clamped down on North Korea's ties to the outside world, moving to sever any links between Pyongyang and banks outside the reclusive state.

"Foreign financial institutions are now on notice that going forward they can choose to do business with the United States or with North Korea, but not both," U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told reporters in New York. "This new executive order enables Treasury to freeze assets of anyone conducting significant trade in goods, services or technology with North Korea. It also allows us to freeze assets of actors supporting North Korea's textiles, fishing, IT and manufacturing industries," Mnuchin said. Echoing the words of President Donald Trump earlier in the day, Mnuchin said Pyongyang has for too long "evaded sanctions and used the international financial system to facilitate funding for its weapons and mass destruction and ballistic missile programs."

Shipping, trade networks

The Trump administration is also specifically targeting North Korea's shipping and trade networks. Any plane or ship that has visited North Korea is prohibited from arriving in the United States for 180 days, according to a text of a notification letter Trump sent to the speaker of the House of Representatives. "This is the right decision by the Trump administration," former U.S. Undersecretary of State R. Nicholas Burns told VOA. "The U.S. and others need to increase the economic costs to Pyongyang for its illegal and destabilizing nuclear program," added Burns, a Harvard University professor and director of the Kennedy School's Future of Diplomacy Project.

A man watches a TV screen showing file footage of North Korea's missile launch and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea​

"Today's action follows the approach used against Iran where countries, banks and individuals had to choose between Iran and the United States," said Anthony Ruggerio, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "North Korea relies on its international commercial and financial networks to procure items for its weapons programs, luxury goods for the elites and other items, and sanctions can restrict North Korea's revenue available for those purposes," Ruggiero, a former U.S. government specialist on targeted financial measures, told VOA.

In an exchange with reporters, Mnuchin said: "I'm not going to comment on what I expect North Korea to do. Obviously ... the objective is for them to stop their missile tests and give up their nuclear weapons." China's central bank has also reportedly ordered the country's financial institutions to stop doing business with North Korea, action Trump called "a tremendous move" that was "somewhat unexpected." Trump expressed thanks to Chinese President Xi Jinping for the move, saying "that was a great thing he did today."

[]EU eyes sanctions[/b]

See also:

North Korea Threatens Nuclear Test in Pacific
September 22, 2017 — North Korea indicated it may soon test a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean after the country’s leader Kim Jong Un warned he would match U.S. President Donald Trump’s threatening words and new sanctions with equally provocative action.

The North Korean leader responded Friday to Trump’s United Nations address this week, when the U.S. leader referred to Kim as a “Rocket Man” on a suicide mission, called the government in Pyongyang a “depraved regime,” and said if forced to defend itself or its allies, the Untied States will “totally destroy North Korea.” In a statement directly attributed to the North Korean leader, Kim on Friday said Trump displayed “mentally deranged behavior” with his threat to destroy a sovereign nation. He called the U.S. president a “rogue and a gangster,” and promised to answer Trump’s insults with the “highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history.” “Action is the best option in treating the dotard who, hard of hearing, is uttering only what he wants to say,” said Kim in statement that was released by the North Korean state news agency KCNA. The agency released a photo of the North Korean leader reading the statement.

Pacific test

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho, who will address the United Nations Friday, told reporters in New York that Kim likely intends to carry out a hydrogen bomb test in the Pacific Ocean. Attempting to conduct an open air nuclear test in international waters would be a highly risky and aggressive act that could, at the very least, expose islands in the Pacific to dangerous levels of radiation, as well damage electrical systems in the region from the strong electromagnetic pulse (EMP) generated by the blast. It could also draw the U.S. into taking preventive military action. “That could trigger probably the strongest response, other than an actual military attack I think, that is probably about the limit where North Korea could go,” said Daniel Pinkston, a regional security analyst with Troy University in Seoul.

South Korea's Hyunmoo II ballistic missile is fired during an exercise at an undisclosed location in South Korea​

Pyongyang conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test earlier this month, but all its atomic bombs have been detonated in an underground facility. The last reported open-atmosphere nuclear test was conducted by China before 1980, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA.) The U.S. and the Soviet Union detonated numerous atomic bombs in the ocean and upper atmosphere before signing the 1963 nuclear test ban treaty that prohibits atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. North Korea has also conducted numerous ballistic missile tests with the goal of developing a nuclear tipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of targeting the U.S. mainland.

However, both President Trump’s harsh rhetoric and Kim Jong Un’s provocative response may also be diplomatic ploys to gain a future negotiating advantage. “The exchange of blusters may indicate that both sides want to compel the other side to back down with the assumption that the other side prefers a diplomatic solution to the current situation,” said Bong Young-shik, with the Yonsei University Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul.

Condemning provocations

 

[Mac1958]

Trying to run down the list of potential reasons for the fat kid's behavior:

1. He's Suicidal.
I doubt it, and I don't think N Korea has any versions of 72 virgins waiting for them.

2. He Believes His Own Hype.
I do wonder about this one. As we see in our own political discourse, ideologues can talk themselves into believing some pretty ridiculous shit. I guess it's possible, probably less likely.

3. He Wants Something.
Maybe he thinks this madness will convince other countries to trade with him and save his country, and his fat ass?

4. He Wants to be Left Alone.
Maybe he's trying to be the regional skunk, the thing everybody leaves alone - give it a wide berth and move on.

Some combination therein?
.

 

[gtopa1]

Who of his own cadres is going to tell Kim he is a mere flyspeck? That would be a bofor for anyone in N Korea!!!

Greg

 

[Rexx Taylor]

and wouldnt we all love to see a missle launch go so way off that the missile does take off,,,then makes a U turn 30,000 feet up,and then just lands somewhere back in N. Korea

 

[mudwhistle]

 

[waltky]

Granny says the Donald needs to go over there an' kick Fatboy's butt...

North Korea says new missile puts all of US in striking range
29 Nov.`17 - North Korea says it has successfully tested a new type of intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the whole of continental United States. State television said Pyongyang had achieved its mission of becoming a nuclear state.

The Hwasong-15 missile, described as its "most powerful", was launched in darkness early on Wednesday. It landed in Japanese waters but flew higher than any other missile the North had previously tested. The test, which defied international sanctions imposed over the North's weapons programme, drew swift international condemnation, with the UN Security Council due to convene an emergency session. South Korea responded by carrying out live-fire drills, launching one of its own ballistic missiles.

Why this launch was different

News of the launch was announced on state television in a special broadcast at midday, as well as in a report released by state news agency KCNA. Pyongyang says the missile reached an altitude of 4,475km (2,780 miles) and flew 950km in 53 minutes, close to independent estimates made by South Korea's military. The projectile, fired at a steep incline, did not fly over Japan as some have done in the past, and landed about 250km short of its northern coast, according to Japanese officials. North Korea has previously said that its projectiles can hit the US but this marks the first time it says it can do it with this new type of missile, which appears to be an upgraded version of previous models.

KCNA added that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who personally signed off on the launch, "declared with pride that now we have finally realised the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force, the cause of building a rocket power". North Korea has previously said that its projectiles can hit the US but this marks the first time it says it can do it with this new type of missile, which appears to be an upgraded version of previous models. KCNA added that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who personally signed off on the launch, "declared with pride that now we have finally realised the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force, the cause of building a rocket power".

The report said that "as a responsible nuclear power and a peace-loving state", North Korea would "make every possible effort to serve the noble purpose of defending peace and stability of the world". It said its weapons, meant as a defence against "the US imperialists' nuclear blackmail policy", would "not pose any threat to any country" as long as North Korean interests were not infringed upon. "This is our solemn declaration." An analysis by the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists concludes that the missile could have travelled more than 13,000km on a standard trajectory, thus reaching "any part of the continental United States". But it seems likely, the analysis adds, that the missile had a very light mock warhead, meaning it might lack the power to carry a nuclear payload, which is much heavier, over that distance. North Korea however says the Hwasong-15 could reach mainland US carrying a "super-large heavy warhead".

The risky business of interpreting Pyongyang's words

 

[waltky]

Granny says, "Dat's right - dem Chinamens an' No. Koreans in cahoots together...

Chinese experts: War on Korean Peninsula may come sooner than later
Dec. 18, 2017 -- Chinese regional experts have warned that an outbreak of war on the Korean Peninsula looks likelier than ever, despite Seoul and Beijing's agreement last week that such a conflict cannot be tolerated.

Chinese daily Global Times quoted Shi Yinhong, Professor of Renmin University, who said, "The possibility of war breaking out on the Korean peninsula has become the highest in several decades," pointing to the "vicious cycle of threats" between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Shi said that that China can only delay an all-out clash between them as it is too late to turn the situation around. "China only delay war, hoping that the detonator of the time bomb that is North Korea can be removed," he said.

Chinese security experts warn that China must prepare for a possible war on the Korean peninsula.​

Wang Hongguang, former Deputy Commander of the Nanjing Military Region suggested war could occur much earlier than expected, Chosun Ilbo reported. "It could break out tonight. It may come before March next year when South Korea and the United States begin their annual military exercise," he said. Wang cited a local newspaper article that provided a guideline for Chinese citizens in case of a nuclear explosion, saying this was "a signal conveyed to the North telling it to prepare for the coming war." Putting aside the timing, Professor of Nanjing University Zhu Feng believes Beijing must brace itself for war.

As tensions continue to escalate in the region, a "soft-landing" solution is impossible, he said, adding that "China must prepare psychologically and practically for a nuclear conflict, a radioactive fallout and an atomic explosion." Last week, the Chinese navy began conducting a four-day live-fire exercise off North Korean waters while the air force held simulated anti-missile drills with Russia, South China Morning Post reported. The joint exercise was aimed at repelling ballistic and cruise missile threats in the region, according to Beijing's defense ministry.

Chinese experts: War on Korean Peninsula may come sooner than later

See also:

South Korea scrambles fighters in response to Chinese planes
Dec. 18, 2017 -- South Korea scrambled fighter jets after five Chinese military aircraft entered the country's Air Defense Identification Zone, or KADIZ, on Monday.

The deployment of two Chinese bombers, two fighters jets and a reconnaissance plane follows South Korean President Moon Jae-in's summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. A South Korean joint chiefs of staff official said the Chinese planes entered Korea-claimed airspace from the southwest -- and also flew into Japan's Air Defense Identification Zone, or JADIZ, South Korean newspaper Maeil Business reported. "After our military noticed the aircraft approaching the KADIZ from the west, we used a hotline with the Chinese military to confirm whether or not it was Chinese military aircraft, and to take countermeasures," the South Korean official said.

South Korea scrambled F-15K and KF-16 fighter jets in response to the incoming flights -- two Chinese H-6 fighter jets, two J-11 fighters and one TU-154 reconnaissance aircraft. The Chinese aircraft reportedly re-entered the KADIZ after leaving the Japanese zone, and did not leave the airspace until 1:47 p.m.

China deployed the J-11 fighter and other aircraft into South Korea and Japan-claimed airspace on Monday, according to Seoul's joint chiefs of staff.​

Chinese aircraft last flew in Korea-claimed airspace on Jan. 9, when they deployed six H-6K bombers, a KJ-200, a propeller airborne early warning and control aircraft and a Y-9 reconnaissance plane. The Chinese flights Monday came as Beijing's foreign ministry said the summit between Xi and Moon was a "success," South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the two sides agreed to "improve and develop the relationship," and to "respect the interests of our neighbors." The summit in Beijing was eclipsed last week by brutal beatings of South Korean photojournalists, which were met with protests in Seoul. "Chinese security guards kicked Korean journalists in the face and engaged in a group attack," protesters said Friday. "It is a barbarous act, and it is hard to believe it could happen in a civilized country."

South Korea scrambles fighters in response to Chinese planes

 

[waltky]

Granny says dey playin' Brer Rabbit inna briar patch...

Analyst: North Korea diplomats say attack on U.S. would be 'suicidal'
Jan. 11, 2018 -- North Korean officials say there is a "misperception" that the country is acquiring advanced missile capability in order to strike the United States.

In an article in 38 North, Alexander Vorontsov, head of the Department for Korean and Mongolian Studies and the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russia Academy of Sciences, said North Korean diplomats are worried the misunderstanding is clouding perceptions of the regime's weapons program. The diplomats told Vorontsov in November, "'it would be suicidal to attack the USA first and especially with nuclear weapons. "We understand that it would be the last day of our country.'"

North Koreans are also genuinely worried the United States could launch a preventive war on the peninsula. "These officials feared that the U.S. was already trying to shape the battlefield for a military operation against the North, and that South Koreans do not seem to have grasped the reality that the Trump administration is set on a course for preventive war," Vorontsov wrote.

North Koreans also told the analyst South Koreans are unprepared for U.S.-initiated military action on the peninsula. "In my conversations in Pyongyang, senior North Korean foreign ministry officials did not conceal their surprise that Seoul failed to see the huge gap in threat perceptions between American and South Korean societies," Vorontsov stated. "The North Koreans see growing signs, reflecting President Donald Trump's 'America First' principle, that the United States is prepared to accept the terrible loss of lives that would result from a large-scale military conflict with North Korea."

North Korean diplomats recently told a visiting Russian analyst the regime's weapons program is not being pursued to strike the United States.​

But diplomats also said they are not completely knowledgeable of how North Korea could achieve nuclear parity with a powerful United States. "'We are diplomats, not military guys. Only our leader knows the issue in full,'" they said, according to Vorontsov. Tensions have receded dramatically on the peninsula since North and South have held high-level talks at Panmunjom, and North Korea agreed to send its athletes to the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

But North Korea remains critical of U.S. policy. Yonhap reported Thursday North Korea's religious council strongly condemned a U.S. State Department designation of the regime as a country of particular concern under the International Religious Freedom Act. "The United States blabbers on about religious freedom and speaks blasphemously of our republic's highest dignity," the North Korean council said, according to KCNA. "They are trying to shake the faithful's beliefs, but it is nothing more than an anachronistic delusion." Defectors have said being found in possession of a Bible is a punishable offense in North Korea.

Analyst: North Korea diplomats say attack on U.S. would be 'suicidal'

 

[P F Tinmore]

Playlist, North Korea, by Eva Bartlett, August 2017

Extracurricular accordian music, North Korea

 

[Bootney Lee Farnsworth]

...is a shithole/house.

 

[HenryBHough]

That North Korea exists at all today is just another Democrat Party Failure. Remember, Truman (who once-upon-a-time knew wars are for winning) kneecapped General McArthur who would have ended it once and for all.

I guess that redeems Truman with liberals for his having nuked Japen into surrendering.

 

[georgephillip]

DECEMBER 31, 2002
A Pop Quiz on Korea

by GARY LEUPP

"6. In August 1945 defeated Japanese forces formally turned over authority in Korea to the broad-based Committee for the Preparation of Korean Independence, led by Lyuh Woon-hyung, which in September proclaimed the Korean People’s Republic (KPR). When U.S. forces under Gen. Reed Hodge arrived in Inchon to accept the Japanese surrender, they

a. ordered all Japanese officials to remain in their posts, refused to recognize Lyuh as national leader, and soon banned all public reference to the KPR

b. recognized Lyuh as the legitimate head of state

c. negotiated with Lyuh to facilitate swift attainment of independence of a united Korea

Koreans from one end of the peninsula to the other were planning for national elections in August of 1945 when a racist US general, who admitted he saw little distinction between Koreans and "Japs," prevented that balloting from going forward.

Virtually everything that has gone wrong in Korea from that time until now is due to US interference in September of 1945.

Never Underestimate Trump

 

[sealybobo]

Trying to run down the list of potential reasons for the fat kid's behavior:

1. He's Suicidal.
I doubt it, and I don't think N Korea has any versions of 72 virgins waiting for them.

2. He Believes His Own Hype.
I do wonder about this one. As we see in our own political discourse, ideologues can talk themselves into believing some pretty ridiculous shit. I guess it's possible, probably less likely.

3. He Wants Something.
Maybe he thinks this madness will convince other countries to trade with him and save his country, and his fat ass?

4. He Wants to be Left Alone.
Maybe he's trying to be the regional skunk, the thing everybody leaves alone - give it a wide berth and move on.

Some combination therein?
.

I told you Trump supporters to hold off before declaring victory

U.S. Spy Satellites Reportedly Detect New Activity At North Korea Missile Factory | HuffPost

Trumps being played. He looks foolish and weak.

 

[JWBooth]

Smart people look to their hole card.