Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

US has 'significant' deterrent capability against North Korea: Rice
AFP ^ | 05/02/05

Posted on 05/02/2005 8:14:10 PM PDT by TigerLikesRooster

US has 'significant' deterrent capability against North Korea: Rice

Mon May 2, 6:40 PM ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States has "significant deterrent capability" to thwart North Korea's nuclear ambitions, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned as the White House called a weekend missile test by Pyongyang "provocative."

ADVERTISEMENT

Rice told reporters, after talks here with French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, that "the United States maintains significant, I want to underline significant, deterrent capability of all kinds in the Asia-Pacific region.

"So I don't think there should be any doubt about our ability to deter whatever the North Koreans are up to," she said.

The short-range missile launched off North Korea's east coast came a day before the opening of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty conference in New York and as Pyongyang stepped up its war of words with the United States.

Sunday's missile test was "a continuation of a series of provocative acts by North Korea, and they only serve to further isolate North Korea," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

"There is a consensus among all parties in the region that the only viable path for North Korea is to return to the six-party talks and to abandon its nuclear weapons program," he said.

Rice said that missiles would "at some point" have to be a part of the discussion to scrap North Korea's nuclear program although she did not specify whether it should be included in multilateral talks, designed to end the hardline communist state's nuclear weapons buildup.

Her reminder of US military might Monday came amid increasing signals that American patience is wearing thin over North Korea's refusal to return to six-party talks hosted by China.

North Korea has been boasting about its nuclear capability in recent months and said it had built "the nuclear deterrent force" to "effectively cope with the arrogant, outrageous and brigandish method of the US."

Rice discussed the Korean nuclear crisis with her Japanese counterpart, Nobutaka Machimura, on Monday as part of their first round of a "strategic dialogue" and both urged China to play a more active role in reining in North Korea's nuclear ambitions, Machimura said.

"Certainly the Chinese have made a lot of efforts recently, and we recognize and appreciate that," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. "But the fact is, North Korea hasn't come back."

Rice and Machimura also discussed the possibility of referring the Korean nuclear crisis to the United Nations Security Council.

"We touched upon that at this meeting, as well, as one of the options on the table, but the primary thing is to realise the six-party talks as soon as possible. But everything else is on the table, as well," Machimura said.

Rice emphasized "the ability of the United States to deter, both on behalf of itself and on behalf of its allies, North Korean nuclear ambitions or gains on the (Korean) peninsula."

The United States has a pact with its allies Japan and South Korea to defend them if they come under threat from North Korea, and it has military facilities and troops stationed in the two countries.

China has hosted three rounds of the six-party talks involving the two Koreas, Russia, the United States and Japan, but North Korea failed to show up for a fourth round set for September 2004.

At the talks, the United States has supported multilateral security guarantees for North Korea if it verifiably and irreversibly scraps its weapons program.

US intelligence officials believe North Korea has had a nuclear weapons capability since the early 1990s and may have added to its arsenal since it expelled UN nuclear inspectors and withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 2003.

The director of the US Defense Intelligence Agency said last week North Korea is believed to be capable of arming a long-range missile with a nuclear warhead and could deploy a two-stage intercontinental missile that could hit US territory.

"That's all the more reason why we need to take steps under the assumption that they can, because of the regime that is in power there," White House spokesman McClellan said Monday, underlining President Bush's initiative for a missile defense system.

"That's one important deterrent that we continue to pursue," he said.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 6partytalk; deterrent; missiletest; nkorea; northkorea; npt; nuke; proliferation; rice
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-52 next last
To: shaggy eel
It's worth a read I think. Also, the book titled "The Magician." That's about the British stage magic artist that became a Major in His Majesties Service and was placed in charge of Camouflage and concealment and he used his theatre skills to do some pretty amazing things.
21 posted on 05/02/2005 8:53:34 PM PDT by AZHua87 (Insurgent BloggerVet!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: Experiment 6-2-6

South Korea will be an island.


22 posted on 05/02/2005 8:54:54 PM PDT by sheik yerbouty
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: AZHua87

,,, that's talent!


23 posted on 05/02/2005 8:58:58 PM PDT by shaggy eel
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 21 | View Replies]

To: TigerLikesRooster
The US can't do anything more than try to prevent NK from shipping technology overseas.

NK is nuclear and that will not change.

China is useless and a war is out of the question.

24 posted on 05/02/2005 9:00:49 PM PDT by zarf
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SmithL
Same deterrence that beat the Soviet Union

Except the Soviets weren't nuts.

25 posted on 05/02/2005 9:04:54 PM PDT by ConservativeLawyer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: ConservativeLawyer
Except the Soviets weren't nuts.

So, even though the Soviet Union went bankrupt, Mother Russia is still habitable.

26 posted on 05/02/2005 9:08:58 PM PDT by SmithL (Proud Submariner)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: SmithL

All I'm saying is I'm not sure the leadership of NK will think through the logical result in which their actions may result. Having said that, I hope you are right.

BTW: thank you for your service.


27 posted on 05/02/2005 9:18:26 PM PDT by ConservativeLawyer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: TigerLikesRooster
"the United States maintains significant, I want to underline significant, deterrent capability of all kinds in the Asia-Pacific region.

That's what I like to hear Condi!

You hear that Kimmie?

28 posted on 05/02/2005 9:22:46 PM PDT by vezke
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ConservativeLawyer

I hope I'm right too, but I believe you completely about NK being nuts. Mutually Assured Destruction was a workable concept against a major power that wanted to avoid destruction. I have no idea what NK really wants, and I suspect that they don't know for sure, either.


29 posted on 05/02/2005 9:24:38 PM PDT by SmithL (Proud Submariner)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies]

To: Restorer

The problem of dealing with folks like Saddam and Kim Jong Il is that they are simple street thugs elevated to positions of power that are beyond their intellect. This is like your local Afghan warlord having a nuclear tipped SCUD. There are different variations in the theme but they are both the same.

To them, the world is one big Gangland. Saddam slimed his way through the streets of Tikrit and Kim Jong Il fought his way through the N. Korean authoritacracy. That is all they know. Live and die by the sword. These guys having nuclear weapons is bad. Very bad. I'm not sure what we can do about it. There are some very touch choices to make in the near future.


30 posted on 05/02/2005 10:02:28 PM PDT by ChinaThreat (s)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: ChinaThreat
Kim Jong Il fought his way through the N. Korean authoritacracy.

As I understand it, Mr. Kim actually inherited his position from Dad. That means he's likely to be even less grounded in reality than if he'd fought his way up from the mean streets.

Imagine what Hitler's son might have been like.

31 posted on 05/02/2005 10:16:35 PM PDT by Restorer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 30 | View Replies]

Comment #32 Removed by Moderator

To: Experiment 6-2-6; nuconvert; TigerLikesRooster
I suspect the dark night of North Korea might have a glowing green auro soon....



In any other country the light intensity correlates with population density, not in the kingdom of Kim-Dim.

The picture was taken in October of 2000 from a Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellite at an altitude of approximately 450 miles (720 km).
33 posted on 05/02/2005 10:53:35 PM PDT by AdmSmith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: sheik yerbouty
South Korea will be an island.


34 posted on 05/02/2005 11:06:26 PM PDT by ASA Vet (Never argue with an idiot, bystanders might not be able to tell the difference)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: AdmSmith; TigerLikesRooster; All

OH MAN that too scary that tell me alot about Chia Pet Kim

He is one psycho leader I bet only house that has lights in his own cribs LOL!

I don't think that Condi would go to North Korea unlike Maddy not Too Bright I don't think Little Kim like strong women


35 posted on 05/02/2005 11:09:45 PM PDT by SevenofNine (Not everybody in, it for truth, justice, and the American way,"=Det Lennie Briscoe)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: AdmSmith; TigerLikesRooster; All

OH MAN that too scary that tell me alot about Chia Pet Kim

He is one psycho leader I bet only house that has lights in his own cribs LOL!

I don't think that Condi would go to North Korea unlike Maddy not Too Bright I don't think Little Kim like strong women


36 posted on 05/02/2005 11:09:46 PM PDT by SevenofNine (Not everybody in, it for truth, justice, and the American way,"=Det Lennie Briscoe)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

Comment #37 Removed by Moderator

To: TigerLikesRooster

North Korea? Nothing an Ohio-class submarine cant fix.


38 posted on 05/02/2005 11:16:29 PM PDT by Paul_Denton (Get the UN out of the US and US out of the UN!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ServesURight
There wouldn't be a NK had Truman not pulled the plug on MacArthur. Truman is the most overrated President in history.

The ROC would still be on the mainland and Taiwan would never have to face the threat of communism/neo-fascism it does today if MacArthur had his way with both North Korea AND China.

39 posted on 05/02/2005 11:19:27 PM PDT by Paul_Denton (Get the UN out of the US and US out of the UN!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: ASA Vet

Whoops!


40 posted on 05/02/2005 11:27:15 PM PDT by sheik yerbouty
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 34 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-52 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson