Well it’s the UK that comes out the winner in the relationship as any objective look at the last 90 years makes clear.

The U.S. came to the aid of the UK twice during that period.
This was the main reason the UK was able to hold on to much of it’s empire during the cold war period and preserve it’s position as a significant economic and military power.

Sauron

Oh dear!

Sauron

The threat didn’t die. There are still millions of people in the region who hate the Russians and they are very much alive. For the Russians its like what having the State of Maine in revolt would be for the U.S.

Sauron

Yes they have and I believe it is the correct way to go but so far the five have not stood together which has allowed NK to scuttle any progress. So far China and Russia have been unwilling to get tough. Sooner or later their self interest should push them into making an agreement with SK, the U.S. and Japan to get tough.

Sauron

Well it is obvious that no one here has any better idea so it would seem to me that if the China, SK, Russia, Japan and the U.S. could put aside their differences, they could solve the problem rather quickly by using the old carrot and stick approach with or without the help of the U.N.

This would require a lot of good faith and flexibility from the five but faced with a common detemined front the Dear leader would have little option and the carrot would eventually provide the means to liberate the North Koreans from their current slave status. It would require a lot of time and money but it would be better than the current stalemate.

Sauron

Well that is good news.

Did the Russian security forces get him or did he die in an accident?

Sauron

So North Korea as a fascist slave state is less dangerous than a democratic Japan would be if it had nuclear weapons. Well that is an interesting point of view, however, it assumes that Kim is not crazy and we don’t know that.

Japan has been a model citizen for the last 60 yrs. If NK is allowed to contine to threaten the neighbourhood , Japan could very well develop it’s own nuclear insurance deterrent force in a few months. However, there is no reason to believe Japan would become a danger to the region. They became a huge economic power via peaceful means.

It will be interesting to see whether or not China and Russia will agree to any kind of meaningfull U.N. resolution with teeth. As this has never happened, we don’t know how the NK might react. If Kim is not crazy he will have to strike a deal he could not easily cheat on. If he is crazy, it might be better to deal with him now before he develops a nuclear weapon installed on a missile of significant range.

There will always be an element of risk in confronting a country like NK. If the other five nations determine that calling Kim’s bluff now, is too risky, then they will have to come up with a bribe large enough to make him happy and run the risk that he will continue to develop his weapons in secret. This will probably result in more of the same at a later date and a better armed NK and a nuclear armed South Korea as well as Japan.

Sauron

Plawolf

Try reading my comment about the U.S. and Russian missile tests in it’s proper context and you might get it.

Sauron