South Korean officials are expressing growing disquiet about the repeated US insistence that “all options” are on the table with respect to North Korea. Visiting Washington D.C., Choo Mi-ae from the South Korean ruling party sought to make clear that war is not on the table.
Choo said that the US should “under no circumstances” believe that it can go ahead and attack North Korea without the consent of South Korea, and that the goal must be a peaceful resolution in any way possible.
This is something several South Korean officials have pointed out in recent months, amid all the talk of a unilateral US attack. It’s unsurprising, too, because North Korean retaliation would be overwhelmingly against South Korea, and would likely kill millions.
Historically this has been treated as a South Korean veto on US attacks because those threats are nominally presented as being done in defense of the south. With US officials increasingly emphasizing North Korea as a direct threat to the US, however, it’s not clear US officials necessarily believe South Korea still has a say in such a conflict.
Look. The SKORS need to kick the US out and terminate any further joint exercises with them. Period. Otherwise they will be US cannon fodder themselves.
How long after that would the North overrun the South unencumbered ??….
If I ran US foreign policy, I would give South Korea a date certain after which the US would neither maintain a troop presence in, nor offer any kind of defense guarantee to, the place.
Then begin a drawdown. No less than three years, but no more than, say, seven. That would give the South Koreans time to stand up as the US stands down, especially since withdrawing US troops would leave all significant weapons and equipment behind, and if needed train RoK troops in the their use.
It’s simply not the US’s job to be North Korea’s border guards forever. And you might be surprised at how quickly the South VOLUNTARILY reunites with the North if the state doesn’t have the resources to suppress the reunification sentiment like it does now (while the US takes care of its defense, it has plenty of resources to maintain its police state).
Do you think that there are weapons South Koreans don’t know how to operate?
What does that have to do with it? If they don’t know how to operate weapons under our control, then teach them how to operate those weapons before we hit the road (or ocean).
don’t need weapons just let Kim rule .
Kim could rule n a s Korea too just goes to show having a strong military pays off .
Never. South Korea has twice the population, 70 or 80 times the economy and access to the most modern weapons in the world.
Which is why the US Army defeated the Afgan rebel 15 years ago…
The Afghan rebels didn’t attempt to overrun the US military. South Korea’s population, economy and its possession of modern weaponry could indeed deter or stop the North from overrunning them. Of course that doesn’t mean there won’t be a 15 year “stalemate”.
The South has made it clear that it wants cooperation and perhaps more with the North, although so often over the years the USA has insisted on helping election of presidents with a more belligerent attitude, removing the chances of getting together. Thomas Knapp’s suggestion is spot on, but how often has the USA stymied the hopes of peaceful solutions which may not suit US policies?
It was at least six months since Moon Jae-In was elected President of S. Korea, and he had demanded the removal of all THAAD missile defense systems from S. Korean soil .. He made it clear that he and the nation want cooperation and perhaps more with the North, although over the years the US insisted on helping election of presidents with a more belligerent attitude, removing the chances of getting together. Indeed, Thomas Knapp’s suggestion’s spot on, but how often has the US stymied the hopes of peaceful solutions which may not suit its policies?
The problem’s escalated with the Trump Administration; and, Trump himself referred to N. Korean leader Kim Jong-Un as “Rocket Man” after Kim had launched a number of missile tests. He threatened N. Korea with “total destruction” in a speech at the UN a few weeks ago; but, fortunately, he toned down during his 12-day tour of East Asia.
If that were the case, Thane, the US Army would’ve been out 15 years ago .. but they didn’t defeat the Afghan rebels (Taliban). Study Afghan history and you’ll have the truth. No invading army’s ever conquered Afghanistan; mainly, due to its hostile mountainous terrain dotted with caves and due to its savage warring tribes who’ve occupied these caves.
I rather think it more likely that NK soldiers would escape for the bi bim bap and stay for the K-pop.
https://m.theepochtimes.com/north-korean-soldiers-raiding-farms-after-food-provisions-cut_2352929.html
Posted below; Mr Knapp answers your query in detail. I’ll just add that If the SKORS are that helpless — with a much larger population and a huge industrial base—they deserve to be overrun by Lil’ Kim and his half-starved NKOR zombie soldiers.
But likely they’ll reach a peaceful accommodation with the North if they so choose.
North Korea as a prime boogeyman is an excellent opportunity for the MIC (and the banksters) to extract even more billions (trillions?) from USA coffers.
Think about it, folks. We have three carriers in the vicinity, not seen since 2007 when Bush II was talked out of going to war with Iran. What if some mysterious errant missile from wherever sunk one of those sitting ducks? It would be like a new Pearl Harbor! Profits, profits, profits…
I don’t believe that NK could hit an aircraft carrier with a missile if it wanted to. Do you?
I didn’t say that NK would hit an aircraft carrier with a missile.
Thank you for the clarification.
The USA thinks bigger is better, and big aircraft carriers are not hard to sink, as the Japanese found during WW2.
No but I bet China or Russia could hit and sink all three of them in 15 minutes . These carriers are only good against weak countries without high classed missiles . Not very scary weapons to countries that can shoot down satilites in outer space .
And because of that, big carriers are expendable, just like battleships were at Pearl Harbor. We’ll have another “day of infamy” just like 12/7/41.
This was obvious all along. To argue that North Korea is a direct threat to the US is ridiculous. We are running the war games on their border.
If only they were just games.
The unmentioned issue for many South Koreans in regards to military intervention in NK is that many of them still have family on the other side of the border.
Profits, profits, profits. For both US s well as South Korean insiders. This is imperial mentality that cannot be stopped. For as long as population will bear it. What happened after the election they did not like? Crested a lits if noise, blamed everything on Russia, and told Trump what to do. What they sre saying us — wevdo not care about despicables and their problems. In uour face — we will sllow nothing to change our course. And we know where the money is — in foreign policy decisions. This is why both parties are hsving hard time pretending they care about anything else. Health care, infrastructure, bringing economic life to Mid West? Just some noises from democrats to keep masses quiet. But in reality, all the money is in the “security”, ir better put, war state. Their problem is, the war business is not expanding much, and the world is not cooperating. How to find snother Hitler, another human rights mission? It is a challenge. And now, the lynchpin of Iran war strategy, Saudi Arabia — is getting repositioned in the world. Let us not be fooled by the hot anti-Iranian rhetoric— it us to keep neocons from blowing up a lid. But if one thinks that a strategic understanding was not reached with Russia, one is defying the facts on the ground. The Hariri kidnapping has all the hallmarks of CIA and Nayaf supporters handiwork. Let us see how will the King and Crown Prince handle the situation. So far, they are being calm and pretend that nothing is happening — that Hariri can go home anytime. That flies in the face of the tear stained interview, and the stress of a hostage. No friends from Lebanon can reach him, his cell phone taken away at arrival. At first, they let him communicate, but now that he is a basketcase — they cannot risk it. It is very possible that they just want the release of the wealthy tycoon, as the confiscation of his funds would affect a great deal of American media business where he invested.
Some sense of desparation and fury is being felt all around. Syria and Iraq slipping, unwillingness all around to mess with Iran deal, Hariri useless and hemmed in between Christian President and Hezbollah friendly Parliament, South Korea does not war, American people do not want war, any war. Hysterical witch hunt against all those that are believed to be destroying Ameriican people’s war fighting moral. It must be somebody’s fault — to dare undermine that happy symbiosis between finance capial and military industry. What happiness — products that do not sucfer from market saturatikn, or competition, and are designed to be destroyed! To make more of them — better a d more expensive! Think of all the talking heads and pitching of wars. And then — out of the blue, the conflict management formulas are not working. It is Russia’s fault!
So the big bad brave USA is really scared its “defenses” cannot save it from the NK bomb? Perhaps they are right, but it is not the fault of South Korea, alleged US ally, or Japan,ditto, or the 28000 US troops within a few km of the NK border in S. Korea. Why is peace never one of the options on the table in any contact between the USA and its alleged enemies?
Many SKorean policymakers seem to not want war but everything just short of war. That’s not very smart.