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John Bolton and North Korea's Nukes
Share / Recommend - Comment - Print - Monday, Oct 09 2006, 7:51AM
Well, the North Koreans have had their test.
John Bolton has a lot of new fuel for his bluster at the UN, but I hope one of these days, folks take a step back and ask how this happened. How can America and its allies so badly fail to secure their political and security objectives -- which used to be, in part, to prevent North Korea from acquiring nukes and conducting tests?
Bolton failed when he was Under Secretary of State for International Security and Arms Control to set back North Korea's nuclear program. In fact, his behavior and a counter-productive 31 July 2003 speech probably hardened North Korea's intentions. As Ambassador to the United Nations, he has deployed a package of bluster, name-calling, and highly ineffective diplomacy that has distanced rather than brought closer Chinese collaboration with the U.S. to contain North Korea.
It's a whole new game now.
Watch Japan. It will take a while, but my bet is that Japan is outgrowing its nuclear allergy.
-- Steve Clemons
» Next Article - Ban Ki Moon's North Korea Challenge
Reader Comments (6) - post a comment
there's no mystery about this staggering foreign policy failure...one, n. korea doesn't have oil... two, the situation contributes a significant chunk of chaos to an already messy global scenario and helps strengthen precisely those conditions that help fuel the endless war that bush and his cohorts so desperately desire...
I thought Bolton succeeded.
Isn't this what he was shooting for all along?
We have Bush a moronic pseudo-cowboy English-language-mangling buffoon at pretender Pres., a couple of psychopaths in Cheney and Bolton, a Sec of Defense who is "incompetent strategically, operationally and tactically" ( per Retired Major General Paul Eaton ) and Condi LIES A ALOT Rice who is just plain incompetent.
The State of the Union my fellow Americans...is absurd - tragically absurd.
The Bush-Bolton N.Korean policy made no sense if the desire was to have a non-nuke N.Korea. If, however, the desire was to justify an expensive, profitable, anti-missile system, it makes tremendous sense.
Besides, if you want war as far as you can see, Islamofacism might not be enough.
I told a colleague earlier that Japan would renounce its self-defence-only clause within a month, and announce nuclear capability within a year.
Good job strident nationalism isn't on the rise there.. Umm.
Why do I get the impression we'll be cursing Bush for decades to come?
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