U.S. State Department: North Korea Is Not A Terrorist State

The stern of the South Korean Cheonan ship is docked on a barge off Baengnyeongdo island near the maritime border with North Korea, northwest of Seoul, Friday. Lee Jung-Hoon/Yonhap/Reuters

U.S.: Cheonan Sinking Was Not International Terrorism -- Reuters

(Reuters) - The sinking of a South Korea warship widely blamed on North Korea does not by itself justify putting Pyongyang back on a U.S. terrorism blacklist, the U.S. State Department said on Monday.

The United States has yet to take tangible action to punish North Korea for its alleged March 26 sinking of the Cheonan corvette in which 46 South Korean sailors died. Pyongyang has denied responsibility for the incident.

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Update: US: Sinking of SKorean warship not terrorism -- AP

My Comment: So typical of the U.S. State Department to use "legal terms and definitions" to define North Korea's unprovoked attack and sinking of a South Korean naval vessel.

The message that is now sent out to the region is clear .... the U.S. is not going to respond to this blatant act of North Korean aggression. As a result of this announcement I expect the reactions from the region to be the following .... officials in South Korea and Japan are probably fuming over this announcement, China and Russia are shrugging their shoulders, and the North Koreans are now telling themselves that the U.S. is a paper tiger.

The U.S. response (or lack of) is only going to embolden the North Koreans .... and as a result .... expect another North Korean provocation against the South this year.