U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and South Korean President Moon Jae-in deliver a joint statement from the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, U.S., June 30, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Business Insider/Reuters: South Korea gave Kim Jong-un a 'red line'
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea would be "crossing a red line" if it put a nuclear warhead on an intercontinental ballistic missile, South Korea's president said on Thursday, but the United States had promised to seek Seoul's approval before taking any military action.
North Korea's rapid progress in developing nuclear weapons and missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland has fueled a surge in tensions in recent days. Pyongyang has threatened to fire missiles towards the Pacific island of Guam and U.S. President Donald Trump has warned it would face "fire and fury" if it threatened the United States.
"I would consider that North Korea is crossing a red line if it launches an intercontinental ballistic missile again and weaponizes it by putting a nuclear warhead on top of the missile," South Korean President Moon Jae-in said at a news conference marking his first 100 days in office.
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WNU Editor: This is not really a surprise (and I would also add Japan to this mix) .... South Korea's Moon says U.S. to seek Seoul's approval before any action on North Korea (Reuters).
3 comments:
As long as America will need the approval of SK to do any military action, SK is not taking any risk.
Jac,
I think you are spot on. This has actually been a woefully one-sided "aliance" to the benefit of SK for quite some time. When DJT was a candidate, he rightly pointed this out and was vilified for it. In light of recent events, now may not be the best time to rethink the "aliance."
What we really need is a militarily self sufficient South Korea that can act as a deterrent against North Korea. The sooner we can get there better.
If the US needs to attack North Korea to defend itself, I don't think it's going to be a good idea to allow South Korea to dictate or to be able veto our foreign policy with regards to North Korea. We should consult with them and respect their opinions but to allow them veto power is going to far. After all they aren't going to allow us veto power over their policies.
At this point, with the Russians and Chinese agreeing to sanctions and China pledging neutrality a military attack on North Korea is probably not necessary but things can change. Also given the tendency of US officals to overestimate our capabilities while underestimating those of adversaries, the North Korean threat to America is probably greater than is generally understood.
In a previous post, I posted some things that may have been offensive to some. Had it been directed at me I probably would have found it offensive. If anyone was offended, I apologize and ask for forgiveness.
If Kim attacks u.s interests then south won't be calling the shots.
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