|
|
|
 > |
FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794
|
|
It is in the breaking news sidebar! |
|
Posted on 07/15/2003 6:35:54 PM PDT by Concordant_Opposition
US WARNED OF "IMMINENT" NUCLEAR PERIL
July 16 2003 By Shane Green (Tokyo) & Louise Dodson (Canberra)
Former United States Defence Secretary William Perry has warned that the US and North Korea are drifting towards war, with an "imminent danger" of nuclear explosions in American cities.
His chilling assessment of the communist state's nuclear program came as an increasingly worried China intervened, revealing a push for talks and sending a special envoy to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
Mr Perry, in an interview with the Washington Post, warned that time was running out in the nuclear crisis. "I think we are losing control of the situation," said the Clinton-era defence chief.
He warned that North Korea could soon begin exporting nuclear weapons to terrorists and other adversaries of the US, posing "an imminent danger of nuclear weapons being detonated in American cities".
Referring to reports that North Korea had begun reprocessing spent nuclear fuel rods to make weapons-grade plutonium, Mr Perry said: "I have thought for some months that if the North Koreans moved toward processing, then we are on a path toward war."
North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear facility has about 8000 spent fuel rods capable of producing enough plutonium to make between six and 12 nuclear weapons. South Korean intelligence reported last week that reprocessing had begun.
Mr Perry oversaw former US president Bill Clinton's plan for a military strike against the Yongbyon nuclear facility a decade ago. The strike was never carried out after a deal was reached with Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear ambitions in return for energy aid.
The current crisis was triggered by North Korea's admission last October that it had a nuclear arms program.
Mr Perry said the US policy on North Korea was in disarray, with President George Bush to blame for an absence of negotiations. "I think he has come to the conclusion that Kim Jong-il is evil and loathsome and it is immoral to negotiate with him," Mr Perry said.
With the crisis deteriorating, it was revealed yesterday that China - a mentor of North Korea - had intervened with a compromise plan for talks.
Washington has insisted on multilateral talks, while North Korea wants only direct talks with the US. Under the Chinese plan, there would be multilateral talks first, with direct talks on the sidelines.
News of the proposal followed a rare visit by Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. China's state Xinhua news agency said the two men had "in-depth discussions on issues of mutual concern" in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.
In Manila, meanwhile, Prime Minister John Mr Howard yesterday dismissed claims that North Korea would target Australia with nuclear weapons.
Mr Howard said North Korea posed no nuclear threat to Australia, and the Government would not be deterred from involvement in an anti-proliferation initiative agreed to in Brisbane last week.
President Bush plans to exert pressure on Pyongyang by intercepting North Korean vessels suspected of carrying components for nuclear weapons or missiles technologies.
Kim Myong-Chol, of the Centre for Korean-American Peace, said on Monday night that if North Korean ships were stopped at sea, its nuclear arsenal could be turned on Australia. "If Australia becomes part of American manipulation against North Korea, North Korea reserve the right to strike back on Australia," Mr Myong-Chol told ABC TV's Lateline.
The Government and Labor both dismissed the claims yesterday, saying North Korea did not have the ability to launch a nuclear strike on Australia even if it wanted to.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Mr Myong-Chol was a self-appointed spokesman with no international standing.
The North Korean embassy in Canberra also said its country had no reason to bomb Australia.
|
|
|
|
> |
FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794
|
|
It is in the breaking news sidebar! |
|
"Mr. Perry" is clearly somebody we should listen to (NOT!).
I don't trust the ChiComms at all. I do not believe NK blows its nose without the PRC knowing about it and being a part of it.
There are wheels within wheels going on here...China has us watching one hand while another veiled hand potentially does something entirely different IMHO...particularly when the Clinton era man jumps into the middle of it and warns us about the very outcome of their own actions.
Very dangerous times...similar in potential strategy (outside of the specific type of threat) to what I describe in my novel series, (ie NK drawing us in while China pretends to mediate, until the SHTF, then they pile on too).
Given what happened during his watch, you would think that these jokers would learn that negotiations for negotiation's sake is nothing but a waste of time.
Would Mr. Perry or the writer of this article like to take a wild stab as what the TRUE end results of Bubba's "energy aid" really was?
China should have intervened years ago. China has a responsibility that cannot be denied, partly because of China's military support for NK during the Korean War and partly because China is the dominant neighboring country. If China can't keep the peace, then that's about the end of it.
I'll believe Perry ... umm .. NEVER!
Control your spoiled brat even if it means spanking them so hard Baby Kim is tossed from power. Otherwise, you will have sold your last gizmo in any mall in America.
I suspect that China will be on board to some degree. If China is involved militarily they should be working with us. If it is otherwise, everyone is in for some rough times and it won't be over soon.
Simple answer: We didn't want another world war only 5 years after the last one ended. Defeating the Communist bloc would have required millions of US troops and tens of billions of dollars - at a time when the American people were only beginning to enjoy the fruits of the post-WWII economic boom. It was made worse by the fact that the USSR had acquired nukes, even if it didn't yet have the missiles to deliver them.
There was really just a 4-year-window - 1945 to 1949 - to strike the Communist alliance decisively, before we lost our monopoly on atomic weaponry. After that, the costs of defeating Communism simply outweighed whatever material benefits it would have brought us.
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.