The 20+ nations in Vancouver talking about North Korea repeatedly heard the same message from US officials: pay no attention to the bilateral talks between North and South Korea, with officials suggesting they not be “fooled” by the talks and suggesting that nothing would come of them.
That’s a problem for the US though, because something is coming of those talks. North and South Korea may have generations of mistrust to work through, but made big progress in just a few meetings, agreeing to march unified at next month’s Winter Olympic, and even field a common team for ice hockey.
Significant reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula seems to be happening, and it’s a big blow to Trump Administration strategy, which has centered on isolating North Korea and presenting the whole world, beyond China and Russia of course, as unified against them.
If even South Korea sees the merits of diplomacy in the face of US talk of military action, the US unwillingness to engage in direct talks with North Korea looks all the more like the real aberration in the region, and a real blow to presenting North Korea as impossible to talk to.
White House officials continue to try to spin the bilateral Korea talks as some sort of trick, saying they believe North Korea’s goal is to “evict” US troops from South Korea. Yet so far, the signs are that this sort of issue hasn’t even been broached at the actual talks.
Indeed, North Korea has tried to keep the talks very limited so far, focused on confidence-building and a general rapport, necessary since the two nations hadn’t talked in over two years. Their long-term goal is to prevent a US attack, and right now its not clear South Korea can offer that assurance to them, but the more these talks progress, the less justification the US will have for not coming to the table.
This is beautiful!!
The Ziocons wouldn’t let such an opportunity like The Olympics go to waste. The American fascist regime has a history of starting wars and colour revolutions during the games, the war on south Ossetia in 2008 during the Olympics in Beijing, when US “advisors” and Georgia killed 11 Russian peacekeepers on a U.N. mission and thousands of Ossetians after US had assured the (now stateless) Georgian dictator that Russia wouldn’t intervene.
Russia did but stopped short from taking Tbilisi but not after making sure that Georgian military wouldn’t be able to pull such a stunt again for the foreseeable future, and they also destroyed some Israeli military infrastructure interestingly enough, that obviously had something to do with a future US/ Israeli attack on Iran.
And of course US’s and Vickie Nudelmans bloody regime change/putsch in the Ukraine during Sochi after which the infamous Nazi junta was installed, to name a few.
Since its all about Russia, were on the “grand chessboard” will they target those pesky Russians? US won’t attack N.K who now has the nuclear deterrence they were looking for since US killed 30% of its population and flattened the country with bombs and napalm and besides Russia and China won’t allow that anyway, but they might want to heat things up again in the Ukraine after they lost Syria but not before they make sure that US who killed the serious competition in the bought WADA scam, takes a lot of gold medals in S.K.
Great comment.
‘The WH believes North Korea’s goal is to “evict” US troops from South Korea’
Even if true, why cannot a sovereign country ever ask the Yanks to leave?
Germany still has them, Japan too, and who cares what the population thinks?
If Pres Moon plays his cards right, there could even be peace, in time. A real blow for the USA USA.
Not to mention Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
I firmly believe that these two nations would have reunited decades ago if NOT for the non-stop meddling of the US.
You’re absolutely right, David; North and South Korea would’ve reunited decades ago. except that the non-stop meddling of the US prevented it. I think this time, these two nations will reunite, whether the US wants it or not.
S. Korean President Moon Jae-in had already made it known that every US base in his country would be shut down and all US military personnel evicted, along with the inefficient THAAD Missile Defense Sytems deployed throughout SK. Now’s the time he acted on that promise.
Trump has done a wonderful thing (probably inadvertently).
If war breaks out then in 1 hour, 2 million South Koreans in and around Seoul will be dead. 2 Million North Koreans will certainly die. By forcing the two to really confront the possibility of war and not mere strutting back and forth across the road, he has concentrated their minds wonderfully.
Only an American or a total psychopath (but I repeat myself) could contemplate such an outcome without deciding to to do something to advert it.
The Olympics gives a symbolic opportunity to consolidate the two.
North Korea cannot open the border without a guarantee that US-CIA will not be allowed to foment an overthrow and revolution. If NK can get a guarantee that no westerner (US, EU, UK, et al) will be allowed in, then they can open up to SK, Japan, China and Russia.
Unfortunately, like Assad, USA has a mantra that Kim is an evil man and has to go.
So my question is “Who the F*q died and made you assholes God?”
I believe the assholes you refer to are running the US government. Since none of the campaign promises made by Trump (those on which he was elected) are being fulfilled, we must assume the assholes are not American. If the assholes are not American, we have a litany of candidates to choose from but the odds are good that the culprit is a middle-eastern foreign aid recipient that possesses nuclear weapons without any whinning from the US about joining the NPT. North Korea nukes = bad! Iran nukes = bad! Israel nukes = what nukes?
“Since none of the campaign promises made by Trump (those on which he was elected) are being fulfilled, we must assume the assholes are not American.”
Not keeping promises or fulfilling treaties is the very essence of being American!
I am not saying that US is the cause or is responsible for all the C*q ups in the world. I am just saying that we are blaming you.
Sounds pretty irrational to me.
What is irrational is a nation of 330 million people, going around the world, killing and looting, raping and destroying, bombing and murdering and then claiming that some p*sswilly little country, the size of a US city, a US economy 100x the size, with less than 6 million people ‘made them do it.’
PJ I don’t think you get it. The campaign Trump won the election on is the antithesis of the governments course at the moment. There are about 62 million Americans who elected the TUNA based on his assertions that he would address the very problems you mention. It is obvious something changed his mind once he entered office. I believe the phenomenon referred to as the “deep state” has asserted itself in a way the TUNA has been unable to refuse. In all likelihood he was shown the assassination of JFK tapes repeatedly for several hours and asked if he understood their implications. The US President does not run the show! The embedded assets that do run the show display a remarkable affinity for anything but American values. Down to the conduct of the military forces and police there is no longer value for liberty or human life. It is a disgusting reality Americans now realize cannot be changed at the ballot box. I’m sure we could use your most insightful observations in how we might improve that situation. That is the current state of play.
Here ya go.
“Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say ‘what should be the reward of such sacrifices?’ Bid us and our posterity bow the knee, supplicate the friendship and plough, and sow, and reap, to glut the avarice of the men who have let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth? If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen!” — Samuel Adams
“God has had mercy upon us, though we have committed monstrous sins against each other as well as against the world. God has brought us to this day, (in the story, America has just re-won its freedom after a long dictatorship) though we are not worthy of it. For many years, He has stimulated the hearts and the souls of a few free and just men, who have worked among you, unknown to you. He gave them a lash with which to arouse you. He gave them words to awaken you. He gave them courage to deliver up their lives for you, though you were not worthy of it. You betrayed them to your oppressors and your tyrants, but still they loved you. You called them ‘traitors’ and ‘subversives,’ when they cried out to you that the walls of your nation were tumbling into the seas of tyranny and death. When they warned you on the day religion was turned against religion, and race against race, in America, you laughed at them and denounced them as ‘dividers of the country.’ When they cried to you that States Rights were being abrogated, you shouted ‘Unity!’ at them, and beat them down, and silenced them. When they exposed the causes of wars to you, and the plot against you in those wars, you jeered at them with such epithets as ‘isolationists’ or ‘pacifists.’ While you still had a measure of liberty and could vote vile tyrants and corrupt men out of office, you listened, instead, to the promises of those men, and you voted honourable and decent men out of office.” — Taylor Caldwell, “The Devil’s Advocate
“The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”
Thomas Jefferson
Thank you for the eloquence of these learned men. My question to you remains. What would you suggest? 200 year old statesmen are long dead and buried. We have a problem now. Get off your wooden pony and make a meaningful, relevant response.There are a lot of people listening. Stump up or bugger off.
The message was blindingly obvious to any with eyes to see. Nothing changes except through violence. Revolution is the only way to rid yourself of tyrants.
Now I am not advocating such a thing. To do so would be seditious and a criminal offence.
The state sanctions violence against you, and prohibits violence against the state, because they are well aware that ” Nothing changes except through violence”.
“We are in power. Nobody will deny it. By virtue of that power we shall remain in power…We have no words to waste on you. When you reach out your vaunted strong hands for our palaces and purpled ease, we will show you what strength is. In roar of shell and shrapnel and in whine of machine-guns will our answer be couched. We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain. As for the host of labor, it has been in the dirt since history began, and I read history aright. And in the dirt it shall remain so long as I and mine and those that come after us have the power. There is the word. It is the king of words–Power. Not God, not Mammon, but Power. Pour it over your tongue till it tingles with it. Power.”
– Mr. Wickson, The Iron Heel by Jack London
Get used to it slave.
The only ‘meaningful relevant response’ comes in .308.
“All political power comes from the barrel of a gun.
The communist party must command all the guns, that way, no guns can ever be used to command the party “– Mao Tse Tung
So you posture and regurgitate others work, but advocate doing nothing. Well done. In the US we call this “whining”, which accomplishes nothing. Spare me your rhetorical bullshit and go whine about the UKs problems.
Talking to Yanks is like having a discussion with 2-year-olds.
They have all the insight of a Turnip.
What part of “Nothing changes except through violence. ” can you not understand?
Ok. I get it. Nothing to add. Piss off wanker.
Finally.
I was overestimating when I said 2-year-old.
Trevor Noah got it right. The Koreas looked at each other, then looked at Trump, then looked back at each other and said, “We’d better do something before that guy gets involved…”
SKorea should just complete a bilateral peace treaty with NKorea with/without US blessings, come hell or high water from Washington. And force the US to become effectively irrelevant.