North Korea Rattles Their Saber…Again…
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Foreign PolicyWell, you can’t say that you didn’t see this one coming…
SEOUL, South Korea -
North Korea vowed on Monday to respond with an “annihilating” nuclear strike if it is attacked pre-emptively by the United States.The Bush administration responded sternly, saying while it had no intention of attacking, it was determined to protect the United States if North Korea launched a long-range missile.
“Should North Korea take the provocative action of launching a missile the U.S. would respond appropriately, including by taking the necessary measures to protect ourselves,” Julie Reside, a State Department spokeswoman, said.
Ugh, the “leadership” in North Korea is ridiculous.
This entry was posted on Monday, July 3rd, 2006 and is filed under Foreign Policy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
July 4th, 2006 at 8:56 am
Maybe that’s why South Korea seems to be much more worked up over Japan and the Dokdo issue.
July 4th, 2006 at 9:46 am
Potbelly Kim is just throwing a tantrum because he thinks that Bush likes Mahmoud Ahmadinejad best.
July 4th, 2006 at 11:56 am
Based on the open preparations for launch and the same mode as previously, North Korea is going to attempt to launch a satellite again. Not a MRBM test.
Cheney/Rumsfeld wants to shoot it down as a test of the anti-missile system.
Rove wants to frighten America because that is how the GOP gets votes.
July 4th, 2006 at 12:23 pm
That could very well be North Korea’s play… actually launch something to orbit, and watch as we writhe in embarassment for trying to accuse them of subterfuge.
Yet who could know? The whole situation reminds me of one of those childish games you play on the playground… the bully walks up to a another kid, pretends to punch him… he flinches… and the bully laughs and laughs and points and laughs.
The bully is North Korea. We are flinching. And that’s a good thing… because if you know the story at all… the day the kid stops flinching is the day he really gets socked.
Realize this… anybody who engages in the playground flinch game with you is not your friend. They may… or may not… be planning to sock you. But they are not your friend.
July 4th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
Is it wrong to nuke a country just because they’re irritating?
July 4th, 2006 at 2:25 pm
He is backed by China.
July 4th, 2006 at 6:46 pm
Do we have a working missile defense or are they incompetent? Was that aimed at Alaska?
July 5th, 2006 at 11:43 am
No, we do not have a working missile defense.
As for competence or incompetence, NOBODY succeeds on the first test of a rocket launch. We never have. The Russians never have. The Chinese never have. Why should the North Koreans?
If they’re competent, they’ll learn from the launch failure and fix the problem next time. They’ve always been able to do that in the past. We’ll see if they can do it this time.
July 5th, 2006 at 3:50 pm
I saw it as just a pathetic attempt to show the world they still had some power so they could feel better about their continuing losses and isolation.
July 5th, 2006 at 4:11 pm
How old is Ol’ Kim anyway? Does he have a son ready to take the reigns? Who is slated to take Kim’s place when he dies? Maybe once he’s gone, that country won’t be quite so insane.
I doubt he’s going to “annihilate” a country whose cultural he is completely obsessed with. At least we know he will stay away from California and Tennessee, right?
July 5th, 2006 at 4:28 pm
Where can I get one of the dictator pajama suits? Kim, needs a bald cat to pet — and pretty sure he did have his testicles sheered at some point in his life. Eeeevvvillll……