Faith-Based North Korea Nuke Policy Revised
The Bush administration is renegotiating a tentative deal with North Korea on a declaration of its nuclear activities to include better verification provisions, after the agreement upset some on Capitol Hill and even in the administration, officials said yesterday…. In an attempt to address concerns about the shift on the declaration, the administration now emphasizes the importance of verification of the North’s secret activities.
We’re not there yet. A shifting “emphasis” doesn’t reassure me much, but we’ll at least be pressuring the Norks in the right direction. I’ll trust J-Bo to let us know if this is a meaningful change or just rhetoric.
I was also gratified to see that, contrary to the analysis I quoted here, Congress was paying attention to this threat. A letter from 14 Republican Senators concerned about what I’ve dubbed the “faith-based” North Korea nuclear policy went out on Wednesday, and appeared to have the desired effect.
I’m sure those Capitol Hill CIA briefings about the Israeli strike on the plutonium reactor that North Korea built for Syria focused their attention as well.
Meanwhile, around the world, the international nuclear bazaar is still going strong:
Customs officials told The Times Of India that Nickunj Eximp Enterprises Pvt Ltd authorities, when questioned, said the graphite was procured from local dealers. When customs officials followed the trail, they apparently found that it was imported at Rs 50 per kg from China and was being exported to Iran at Rs 2,000 a kg.
That’s not pencil-lead graphite, that’s the high-dollar nuclear grade stuff. So, was this a few rogue vendors, or was Chicom Central involved in getting Iran’s nuclear program running? Not sure, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all.
A.M. UPDATE: Here’s commenter Boomer, from my last post on this subject:
Having spent four years as a US National Escort for the INF and START treaties in the mid-late 90s I have a really good idea of how a non-proliferation agreement should work between two nation states. Physical on-site inspection with short notice declarations of intent to inspect (72 hours) and an even shorter notice (12 hours) to declare the site to be inspected allowing the host nation to transport the inspection team to the declared site is the only way to validate that your partner in the agreement is keeping their end of the contract. Also all operations at the inspection site shut down 1 hour after the declaration is made. This type of inspection protocol worked out pretty good between the former Soviet Union and the US.
That would be ideal, but I just don’t see Kim’s regime signing off on anything that comprehensive, or honoring it if they do sign off on it. And then if they breach the agreement…what sort of stick do have to beat them with?
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{Post by See-Dubya}
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That pic of Bolton is hilarious.
It needs to be 100% verify. Trust has not been earned.
Personally, I think N. Korea is just “jerking our chain”, and laughing behind our backs. While we pour more money, food and promises into that country, they respond with words and nothing more. I foresee us being the “fool”, not them.
Right, I hope Japan will bolster its military and intelligence network as well.
It is good to see the US has ratcheted up the heat. The State Department has invoked the rare “Liar-liar-pants-on-fire” threat, no doubt sending Kim “Mentally Ill” Jong reeling in his little size 1 shoes.
State is so serious now, that they have now gone to the diplomatic equivalent of DEFCON 5 – the extraction of the dreaded “cross-your-heart-and-hope-to-die” commitment from North Korea. Don’t mess with the US!
Sounds like a repeat of the fine mess Jimmy Carter and Madeline Albright got us into back in the mid-1990s.
First time shame on them; second time shame on us.
I hope our leaders finally get a set and make N. Korea honor their agreement but I do not put alot of faith in our leaders.
News Flash:
Candidate John McCain weighs in on revised Bush North Korea Nuke policy, shortly after his sharp words for Bush failure in Hurricane Katrina.
Maverick candidate John McCain in an effort to reach accross the aisle suggests if he were president, he would employ Rev Jeremiah Wright as a new peace envoy with North Korea.
Barrack Obama’s
formerpastor, Rev Wright could not be reached for comment while vacationing in Pakistan.America’s chickens!!…..are comin’ home……TO ROOST!
see-dubya like I stated in the last thread on this subject without short notice on-site inspections as was used in the INF/START protocols this should be a NO-GO. There should also be some very good carrot and stick opportunities should Pyongyang comply or fail to comply with the protocols to make sure they are not pulling the same crap they pulled with the Clinton Administration. Trust and Verify! In this case I would have to use “the willing suspension of disbelief” to trust this little tin pot dictator.
I sure hope that missile defense system being established at Kodiak, AK is all it is cracked up to be. If this continues I wouldn’t doubt if Japan would be asking to base some of these systems on their soil.
State Dept. liberal as ever..course after a few years I understand why Jorge didn’t make changes when he became president, he’s liberal as is Condoleeza.
The little whacko NK marches on to his own beat.
DITTOES!!!
Every time I see it I bust out laughing because I would love to see him in a meeting at the UN actually holding up those signs.
The WTF? one…he had the perfect look on his face. The Fo Shizzle one should have been P’shopped a little to turn up the corners of his mouth just a little into a smile.
Glad y’all liked the pic. It makes me snicker too. Photoshopping a smile is out of my league, though–any photo fun you see in my posts has been done with SnagIt or Powerpoint.
I lived in South Korea for many years and watched in amazement how the North has been playing the U.S. for a bunch of country bumpkins. This good-for-nothing pipsqueak of a country has uber-power Uncle Same wrapped around its little finger and has him dancing like the village fool. Shameful.
The only one in the U.S. government who gets it – is John Bolton. He should be in charge of negotiations with the North.