Clinton Calls for ‘Retaliatory’ Acts Against North Korea

Again Vague on Details, Clinton Calls Sinking of Warship 'Unacceptable'

Tensions continued to rise on the Korean Peninsula today, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton following up the latest North Korean threats of war with a pledge to see “retaliatory” acts taken against the reclusive nation.

This was an unacceptable provocation by North Korea and the international community has a responsibility and a duty to respond,” Clinton insisted, repeating similar comments she made last week in the wake of a South Korean report blaming the North for the sinking of the Cheonan warship. North Korea has denied the allegations.

But as with her previous comments, Secretary Clinton was big on rhetoric and short on specifics, once again underscoring the difficulty for the US to respond in any practical way to North Korea, which is already sanctions to the point of being a virtual pariah state.

Moreover, while Clinton insisted on an “international” response she has already failed to convince China to join in whatever UN Security Council measures the US plans, meaning the US retaliation will likely consist of several more speeches of increasing bellicosity, interspersed with North Korean responses.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.