Hidden Nook
"Because in Cyberspace, no one can hear you scream."
Sunday, May 01, 2005
North Korea Conducts Missile Test
[Media Source*] (Hat Tip: North Korea Zone, One Free Korea, Cross Posted on Blogger News)
(Reuters) - The United States believes that North Korea launched a short-range missile into the Sea of Japan, in a test Sunday denounced by the White House as a bullying tactic.
"It appears that there was a test of a short-range missile by the North Koreans and it landed in the Sea of Japan," White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card told CNN. "We're not surprised by this. The North Koreans have tested their missiles before."
It seems that North Korea is getting a bit "cocky" and may have "little big man syndrome." With the six-talks failing it is perhaps time that these actions be brought before the U.N. security council as Japan is suggesting, although it seems that war is on the horizon as both the United States and North Korea are refusing to back down from either of their positions.
Launching missiles is not a new tactic of the regime, but seems to be an old strategy to not only display it's strength in front of it's hostile neighbors and the U.S. but also to the world as well.
In May 1993, North Korea test-fired the Rodong-1 missile, with an estimated shooting range of 1,000 kilometers, toward the Sea of Japan at a time when negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington were deadlocked over the North's nuclear ambitions.
In 1998, North Korea lobbed a ballistic missile over Japan, claiming it was a satellite launch. This prompted Japan to start joint technical research with the United States for a missile defense system.
A media report in late April quoted a U.S. official as saying North Korea could be preparing for a nuclear weapons test in the near future.
Despite using diplomatic measures to resolve this situation peaceably, it may be time to bring about economic sanctions against North Korea in order to "persuade" it to cooperate. North Korea launching a missile is nothing more than a child throwing a tantrum, except for the fact that this "child" can seriously hurt not only it's neighbors but threaten the U.S. as well.
The director of the US Defense Intelligence Agency said last week that North Korea is believed capable of arming a long-range missile with a nuclear warhead and could deploy a two-stage intercontinental missile that could hit US territory.
A war with a nation harboring over a million soldiers (not to mention Chinese political backing) is not something to be desired as a first option, but will be necessary if the U.N. sanctions (as well as economic ones) fail. North Korea would not be as easily defeatable as Iraq, since it's temperatures during winter could cause some weapons to stop functioning properly and would be miserable for troops on the ground.
If North Korea decides to go "head-to-head" with the U.S., they will ultimately lose to a long and bloody fight, but it would be a war regrettable for both sides.
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By Darnell Clayton ⢠11:28 PM ⢠Email Post ⢠â¢
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