Weekend meetings in southeast Asia saw the US continuing to lambaste North Korea for unconfirmed reports of missile work, and continuing to pressure the international community to maintain and increase sanctions against North Korea.
North Korea’s Foreign Minister issued a statement saying he is increasingly alarmed by the US attitudes toward his country, saying the US keeps pushing its old policy of isolation irrespective of the Joint Statement and commitment to negotiate in good faith.
The constant efforts at the UN to block calls for sanctions relief, and to call for increased sanctions, seem in particular to be a problem, with the foreign minister saying it amounted to the US not holding up its end of the nuclear deal.
With critics complaining Trump was going to give up “too much” to North Korea, the administration seems determined not to give North Korea anything, ever, even when North Korea makes significant moves like dismantling test sites. With the administration talking about the denuclearization process taking many years, the policy seems to be to string North Korea along for however many years that is, and then maybe consider giving them something way at the end of the process.
The difference between rhetoric and inconsistant policy adds confusion to the perception of what the US stance is toward NK but most importantly the emperor has no clothes. Trump is playing at being a world leader. He has no real idea whats going on. Hes writing a work of fiction thrown together from bits and pieces of ideas and rhetoric from associates and Fox news and talk radio and whatever is sloshing around in his mind at the moment. Then everyone looks for meaning and cocontextThe great ape speaks and the soothsayers interpret.
He’s winging it. And then the war mongers he’s hired wing it back. The end result is a lot gets said but nothing gets done. Unless your Saudi Arabia or Israel of coarse. If Mueller want’s meddling that’s the direction he should look. But he won’t.
Trump’s words seem to be pretty clear. What muddles things is his need to navigate the neocon landscape in Washington. He can’t do what he really wants. He has to cover his hind-side with every move. That’s what makes him look wishy-washy. But given the state of media and politics, Trump must choose between wishy-washy and traitor.