The Trump Administration, and Deputy National Security Adviser K.T. McFarland in particular, are seeking “outside the mainstream” options for dealing with North Korea, according to reports, and that among these options would be attacking North Korea outright.
While the US has kept a large number of troops on North Korea’s border for generations now, but has long centered that deployment on deterrent factor, keeping the two sides, though technically still at war, from too much direct fighting with one another.
McFarland requested multiple options along with the usual one, citing a “fresh series of provocations” from North Korea, including a possible US military attack on North Korea and also the possibility of just recognizing North Korea as a nuclear state.
Either would be a dramatic shift in US policy, though an outright invasion of North Korea would be particularly shocking to the region, as it would feature a conflict with a nation which may or may not have deliverable nuclear weapons, and an arsenal of missiles and artillery that could do massive damage to neighboring South Korea.
On top of this, a US invasion would be hugely inconvenient for China, as they would almost certainly be expected to absorb a large number of refugees, as North Korea’s military is in many ways the only thing keeping the population from trying to flee en masse.
Oh gee! Isn’t Trump just showing who and what he is all over again!
He’s showing what I would say is “The war party’s kind of man”!
I have to imagine that the hair stands up on the back of some people’s necks every time Ditz posts a good one like this! Say it ain’t so Raimondo?
Throw in this piece from the Intercept:
Trump’s SecDef Has Already Brought Us to Brink of War
And I’m guessing it’s about a “wrap” on Trump!
This is how Trump will start his war with China. North Korea is to Trump what Ukraine was to Clinton. We traded one possible world war for another. Bravo. American “democracy” at its finest.
Likely not. North Korea is as untouchable now as Iran is. Although, Trump may personally think he can start a war with Iran, I have little doubt it won’t happen. Because others who aren’t completely fu-king braindead on foreign policy will tell Trump what not to do.
Or
Somebody will forcefully stop Trump before he can make a very big mistake on his bet on China and what they will put up with.
But you probably know that already don’t you comrade.
Well if there is going to be a war anyway, seize the initiative and you reduce the damage to South Korea. Don’t know how we get the South Koreans to sign up for this? Maybe we don’t tell them?
South Korea has been disgracefully treated ever since the “end of the war” which destroyed the North completely. South Korea, the “winner” whose ally the USA was supposed to be. So many leaders replaced because they were chosen by the people (how dare they) instead of being puppets of the USA. Now there are bases and troops still there, and destruction of Jeju Island. Who wants to be on the receiving end of the USA’s enmity or friendsip
It’s like the soup of the day when it comes to who we threaten with military force.
Have the geniuses, threatening to volumteer someone else’s sons and daughters into another war in SE Asia, entered the reaction of China and Russia into their calculations?
I doubt it would be “an invasion.”
It would instead be the latest mistaken over-reliance on Victory Through Air Power. It would imagine yet another example of “surgical air strikes” that would both not work and kick off exactly what was not wanted.
It would start by destroying South Korea and doing considerable damage to Japan. That huge reversal would end the US role in Asia, and complete China’s rise to dominance there.
It would be a catastrophe for the ideas of the very fools who’d carry out the attack.
Talk of the US attacking N.Korea has become a little more serious now than mere speculation.
Could it be that Trump and his ignorant lackeys are so uninformed that they would even attempt to do it? I would have to admit, the stage has been completely set for a new war with N.Korea.
But then sanity comes back to us and we understand that the powers that be would stop Trump dead in his tracks if he tried it.
All of which is consistent with Trump’s words on improving US foreign policy. Right?
Riiiiiiggggghhhhhttttttt………….
“The Trump Administration, and Deputy National Security Adviser K.T.
McFarland in particular, are seeking “outside the mainstream” options
for dealing with North Korea”
So talks were cancelled last week to ensure no possible chance of peaceful negotiations could happen. North Korea can see what happens when countries give up nukes, and is willing to talk (Dubya Bush cancelled the last lot when he came into power)but the USA cannot imagine why it should try to avoid conflict.
KT McFarland, btw, was a main reason the previous replacement for Flynn refused the job. There is an excellent, terrifying lobelog (sorry cannot link) on her competence or lack of it. Trump has many competitors for weirdness.
It’s definitely leading us to start thinking that this could be the issue that will catapult Trump to stardom. It’s consistent with his verbal thrust against China and it’s an indirect challenge to China within China’s sphere of influence.
There would be little possibility of the American people accepting a direct challenge to China because that would represent the unthinkable. But to go through N.Korea first could actually be within the confines of what would appear to be acceptable to the American people.
On the bright side, I would suggest that Trump is being watched very carefully by cooler heads who are ready and prepared to act to stop him.
Trump supporters continue to cling to the last vestige of hope from what he said concerning US/Russia relations during his campaign. He offers nothing new on Russia specifically and he offers nothing new on foreign policy that could bring us hope for different US foreign policy.
Instead, articles such as this continue to reinforce the perception that he is prowar. A perception that he is more prowar than any previous president in modern times.
That’s reality that we have been able to gather from his demeanour. But it’s still only perceptions based on his words. Will he make it reality?
I wonder why people in the West regard countries like Taiwan and South Korea as mere sheep ready to be led to slaughterhouse by the US. These states exert considerable economic and technological power in the world. They also possess strong democratic institutions, which will strongly resist suicide to serve American interests.
The most likely solution to the problem that a nuclear-capable North Korea poses for the region, is a nuclear-capable neighborhood: with Japan and South Korea leading the pack.
Anything is possible in the mind of a mad psychopath. All he needs is the power it takes to carry out his ambitions.
This is one we are likely to see, either Kim will be taken out or an operation is indeed likely. South Korea and Japan will not tolerate a DPRK capable of wiping them out. I would not be surprised at all if the US launches full-scale against the DPRK before 2020.
Attacking North Korea is completely unnecessary.
Why USA don’t wanted to talk to North Korea, because agressor is USA.
Why would you keep doing military exercise on the border with South Korea to provoking North unnecessarily ? Off course North Korea have a right to defend itself. Thanks to Axis of evil comment from Intellectually light weight George W.Bush now North Korea and Iran has nuclear bombs.
North will hit you first with the help of third party false information or hacking and it will be expensive mistake to learn not to look down to other countries.
Provoking North you are prolonging the Kim in power.