I just hope that Trumps giant ego don’t lead this country into a mess with NK. Is there really a “fire and fury” option?
Atleast at this point Trump is keeping faith in Kim and instead blaming China.
Here is a rundown of where things are at:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/07/10/asia-pacific/politics-diplomacy-asia-pacific/trump-calls-summit-statement-north-koreas-kim-contract-suggests-china-may-interfering-nuclear-talks/#.W0VB5sKQzX4
Atleast at this point Trump is keeping faith in Kim and instead blaming China.
Here is a rundown of where things are at:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/07/10/asia-pacific/politics-diplomacy-asia-pacific/trump-calls-summit-statement-north-koreas-kim-contract-suggests-china-may-interfering-nuclear-talks/#.W0VB5sKQzX4/blockquote >And that is exactly what Trump always does - blames others. Usually his target is Obama...so refreshing to see he's changing things up to blame China. Never are failures of his own making.
As far as keeping faith in KJU - Trump is a fool to believe anything that comes out of the mouth of KJU. Until NK shows us proof with verifiable evidence, then Trump's public relations journey was that - a public relations stunt to hang out with a fellow autocrat.
It is the unknown of what they will do with them and who they may already be and who they will share them with that causes concern.
The only way to truly be taken as a serious player on the world stage is to be a nuclear power.
If you are a serious player and you force the world to respect you, everything else falls into line.
In the case of the last cult of personlaity on Earth, Kim can retain the iron grip he has on his people simply because the rest of the world now can't do a damn thing about it, and the President of the United States just went and legitimized the whole thing.
The threat of nuclear weapons has the same power it has had for 70 years. North Korea won't be firing any ICBMs at anyone else. The threat of knowing they can is enough.
Where are Mule and Goober? They seemed to have disappeared.
Trump had been saying for weeks that we have gotten remains. Since it is impossible he could be so uninformed, clearly it is a blatant lie. Atleast Pompeo acknowledged the US had not received any at his Senate testimony.
All while Trump and Kim talk nice about each other and nothing positive towards denuclearization has happened and China and Russia are failing to enforce sanctions.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/12/world/asia/north-korea-kim-jong-un-trump-letter-nuclear.html
It could be understandable that this would be a drawn out process, despite what the President likes to say. And it could be understandable the details are difficult to work out. But nothing that is actually happening is trending the right way on this.
Pompeo was on the Hill yesterday testifying before a Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Among a large number of topics and questions he did confirm that NK is continuing to produce fissile material for nuclear weapons. A potential bright spot is the dismantling of the Sohae intercontinental missile engine test, although some have questioned it's importance in the scheme of things:
http://time.com/5349407/north-korea-fissile-material-mike-pompeo/
It appears there will be some returning of Korean War veteran remains soon:
And an interesting article from North Korea watch-dog site 38 North pushing back on how some media outlets have mischaracterized some of the current reporting.
https://www.38north.org/2018/07/gporter072618/
Not a good sign:
North Korea tests new missile — and Trump's resolve
Tensions have grown since the leaders failed to reach a deal during their summit in Hanoi in February.
May 6, 2019, 4:18 AM EDT
By Associated PressTOKYO — North Korea appears to have tested a new short-range missile — and President Donald Trump's resolve to keep it from doing more of the same in the future.
The test early Saturday was quickly played down by Trump and his top advisers, who noted it was not the kind of long-range missile leader Kim Jong Un has refrained from launching since 2017.
But the sudden activity on the North's east coast, complete with fiery photos of a purported bull's eye out to sea, alarmed Washington's regional allies and suggests that Kim's missiles are improving even as the Trump administration wrestles with how to get him back to the negotiating table.
Kim personally supervised the test of what experts believe was a short-range ballistic missile first displayed by the North at a military parade early last year, along with a drill involving multiple rocket launchers.
Image: The trail of a suspected North Korean missile is captured in a commercial satellite image
A commercial satellite image captured by Planet over North Korea's Hodo Peninsula at 10:54 a.m. local time on May 4, 2019. Analysts at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey believe it shows the launch point and exhaust trail of a short-range ballistic missile test.Planet / Handout via ReutersThere remains some uncertainty over what was tested.
South Korea's military reported that various "projectiles" flew from 44 to 149 miles before splashing harmlessly into the Pacific. The activity prompted the 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa Air Base in northern Japan to tweet on its official account — in all capital letters — "MISSILE INBOUND."
The tweet was soon followed by an all clear, and an "enjoy your Saturday."
Trump moved quickly to minimize the significance of the test on his efforts to strike a nuclear deal with North Korea, tweeting that Kim "knows that I am with him & does not want to break his promise to me."
Both leaders continue to claim they have a good personal relationship.
But tensions have grown since they failed to make any deals during their most recent summit, in Hanoi in February. Kim and senior North Korean officials have since expressed open frustration with what Pyongyang claims is an inflexible and unrealistic posture at talks by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton.
Kim suggested last month that he intends to give Washington until the end of the year to change its negotiating strategy. If it doesn't, he has warned, he will seek a different path.
His position has created a dilemma for South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who has tried to act as a middleman. Seoul called an emergency meeting Saturday of top officials at its presidential Blue House and urged North Korea to stop committing acts that would raise military tensions.
But such calls ring hollow in Pyongyang since the South has decided to go ahead with joint military exercises with the U.S. that Pyongyang sees as provocative. The North strongly condemned a drill of a South Korea-based THAAD air-defense system by U.S. troops just two weeks ago.
The North's missile test also came just days after the United States tested its Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile from Vandenberg Air Base in California. Though such launches are planned well in advance and not directed at any specific country, they are seen by North Korea as highly provocative.
North Korea last conducted a major missile test in November 2017 when it flight-tested an intercontinental ballistic missile that demonstrated the potential capability to reach deep into the U.S. mainland.
During the diplomacy that followed those weapons tests, Kim said the North would not test nuclear devices or ICBMs. The latest missile, which the North's media referred to only as a "tactical guided weapon," fell well below that threshold.
Image: Kim Jong Un
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervises a "strike drill" in a photo taken by the official Korean Central News Agency on Saturday.KCNA VIA KNS / AFP - Getty ImagesIt is believed to be modeled after Russia's 9K720 Iskander mobile short-range ballistic missile system. The solid-fuel missile, first revealed in a military parade in Pyongyang in February last year, is designed to be maneuverable during flight to boost its accuracy and thwart interception.
Experts noted that despite its physical resemblance, the North Korean missile may be a less capable version of the Russian Iskander, which can carry a nuclear warhead and strike targets as far as 310 miles away.
A less capable version is still a clear danger to U.S. allies and American troops stationed in the region.
The distance between Wonsan, where the launch was held, and the South Korean capital of Seoul is roughly 124 miles. More than 20,000 U.S. troops are based in the South and another 50,000 in Japan. All are within range of the North's short- or medium-range missile arsenal.
North Korea's state-run media had a propaganda heyday with the launch.
The ruling party newspaper showed Kim supervising the drill from a camouflaged tent with a desk and computer screens monitoring a rocky offshore outcropping that was used as a target. One photo has him smiling broadly while a screen shows the top of the crag enveloped in a ball of flames.
It also showed the missile rising from a mobile launcher and stressed how the drill was "organized without an advance notice" to underscore the need for realistic combat readiness.
North Korea's coverage of the developments over the past year presents a sharp contrast to the focus outside of the country on denuclearization.
The North's media has centered its attention on the portrayal of Kim as a strong leader on the global stage seeking to free the country of what the North calls unjustified sanctions so that it can develop its economy. Denuclearization is almost never the main topic of its reports.
That was the official message yet again on Sunday.
In its report on the drills, the state media stressed the need for the military to be on high alert to "defend the political sovereignty and economic self-sustenance of the country ... bearing in mind the iron truth that genuine peace and security are ensured and guaranteed only by powerful strength."
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/north-korea-tests-new-missile-trump-s-resolve-n1002221
It could be said that the US-South Korean THAAD test a couple weeks ago may've caused Kim to express his displeasure with a missile launch rather than just words of condemnation. Tricky situation 1) to know if any good will exists on the North Korean side and 2) the US and South Koreans want to remain ready for any situation that may arise and continue their exercises, or the US launches a missile off the California cost - but the the North Koreans they see that and think 'these guys can't be trusted' either.
The distance between Wonsan, where the launch was held, and the South Korean capital of Seoul is roughly 124 miles. More than 20,000 U.S. troops are based in the South and another 50,000 in Japan. All are within range of the North's short- or medium-range missile arsenal.
124 miles. How could this be reported with a straight face. That is about like NYC nuking Philly.
This is ridiculous - the damage radius of a nuke is half this distance, fallout way more.
Trump should just say some more nice things about Kim, call him a great leader again, reiterate that he trusts Kim, offer North Korea some additional concessions, and then we can talk about awarding Trump the Nobel Peace Prize again.
I had forgotten about the peace prize! Thanks for reminding me! LOL.
Look, I believe that our President, any President, can engage with every country and leader around the world on issues that matter to our nations. Be that Iran or North Korea or whatever. The only objection I ever had about the Obama - Iran deal is that I didn't trust the Iranians. I have no fault with our country and our leaders at the time trying to broker agreements with these countries. I'm not very trusting of the North Koreans either, but open the door, walk in and see what can come of it. We can always close the door again later.
Without trying to sound too much like Gina or something, I can get it, NK thinks that things we have done and are doing are provocative and maybe counterproductive to the bigger picture we are trying to convince them of. But what are they doing - or more importantly, what are they not doing? If Trump is as great as he says he is, give us results. No results so far = no progress = we lose. Really, everyone loses. So if you try and fail, that is ok. Trying and failing is better than never trying at all and never knowing. Question is, what is our next move? In Trump world, he will just pretend all is well because after all it is him in charge and nothing could ever be wrong with that...in his world. To hell with that. You fail, you say you failed and you get up and deal with the issue at hand. Because it doesn't go away. It can be masked by rhetoric, but it doesn't go away.
Me and you are subject to the Un now and then
But you can take the Un and make a Jong
And spit it out again
Kim Jong Un . . .
They did another one
North Korea fires two short-range missiles, South says
9 hours ago
Image copyright Reuters
Image caption North Korean state media confirmed that a "strike drill" was overseen by leader Kim Jong-unNorth Korea has fired two short-range missiles in its second weapons test in less than a week.
The missiles fired from the north-western city of Kusong travelled 420km (260 miles) and 270km towards the east.
North Korean state media confirmed that Thursday's "strike drill" was overseen by leader Kim Jong-un, but did not specify the weapons fired.
The test came hours after a top US envoy arrived in South Korea for talks on how to revive nuclear negotiations.
North Korean news agency KCNA quoted Mr Kim as saying that the "genuine peace and security of [North Korea] are guaranteed only by the strong physical force capable of defending its sovereignty".
Analysts say the North is trying to increase pressure on the US over its failure to make concessions.
Responding to the launch, US President Donald Trump said authorities were looking at it "very seriously".
"I know they [North Korea] want to negotiate... but I don't think they are ready to negotiate," he said. "We'll see what happens. Nobody's happy about it."
A meeting in Vietnam between Mr Kim and Mr Trump ended without agreement in February, with the US insisting North Korea give up its nuclear programme and Pyongyang demanding sanctions relief.
What do we know about the latest firing?
The two missiles were fired at about 16:30 local time (07:30 GMT) on Thursday and reached an altitude of about 50km before falling into the sea, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
They were launched from Kusong, some 160km from the capital, Pyongyang.
On 4 May the North fired several short-range missiles, the first such test since it launched an intercontinental ballistic missile in November 2017.
The tests should not come as a surprise as North Korean state media has repeatedly shown its frustration with recent joint US-South Korea military exercises, BBC Seoul correspondent Laura Bicker reports.
Pyongyang has also warned Washington that its patience to do a deal involving the easing of sanctions will not last long before it takes what Mr Kim has described as a "new path", our correspondent adds.
South Korea's presidency said the launches were "very worrisome" and unhelpful for efforts to reduce tensions.
A calculated provocation
With these latest North Korean missile tests Pyongyang is beginning to establish a pattern.
A programme of tests is clearly underway; the aim, to send a clear diplomatic signal to the Americans (and to Seoul - it is South Korea that short-range systems can target) that the North's patience is running out.
Last weekend North Korea tested a new short-range ballistic missile that flew some 200 km, though experts believe its actual range may be well in excess of that.
The specific type of weapon tested in this more recent episode is not yet clear.
Pyongyang is being careful to avoid testing inter-continental range systems that would breach its understanding with the Americans.
But this "informal deal" only extends to the end of this year. In the absence of any diplomatic progress expect to see more North Korean tests, perhaps of longer-range systems.
What about the nuclear impasse?
Hours before the tests, US Special Representative on North Korea Stephen Biegun arrived in the South Korean capital, Seoul, to discuss getting denuclearisation talks back on track amid rising tensions between the countries since their failed summit.
He is expected to discuss ways to provide humanitarian food aid to North Korea amid reports that it had suffered its worst harvest in decades, leading to chronic food shortages.
Last year, Mr Kim said he would stop nuclear testing and would no longer launch intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Nuclear activity appears to be continuing, however, and satellite images of North Korea's main nuclear site last month showed movement, suggesting the country could be reprocessing radioactive material into bomb fuel.
The country claims it has developed a nuclear bomb small enough to fit on a long-range missile, as well as ballistic missiles that could potentially reach the US mainland.
The only objection I ever had about the Obama - Iran deal is that I didn't trust the Iranians. I have no fault with our country and our leaders at the time trying to broker agreements with these countries.
You weren't bothered by the BILLIONS in cash they sent and tried to keep it a secret? I had an objection to that.
The only objection I ever had about the Obama - Iran deal is that I didn't trust the Iranians. I have no fault with our country and our leaders at the time trying to broker agreements with these countries.
You weren't bothered by the BILLIONS in cash they sent and tried to keep it a secret? I had an objection to that.
you mean the 1.7 billion of Iranian money that was held in escrow, and returned after the agreement was signed.
No, as I am sure you already knew, I was referring to the Billions in CASH that Obama sent to the Iranians (secretly but he got caught) to get them to sign the Nuclear Agreement. Obama & Kerry were such good negotiators that they were able to get Iran to accept Billions in cash to sign a deal that was very one sided in Iran's favor. You call it what you want. But you know what happened.
[Edited on 5/14/2019 by KCJimmy]
[Edited on 5/14/2019 by KCJimmy]
Meme dream
Trump going to DMZ today? Possibly will see Kim there? Perhaps will enter North Korea?
Trump going to DMZ today? Possibly will see Kim there? Perhaps will enter North Korea?
There is something to be said of KJU patronizing Trump with birthday cards & love letters. Flattery & charm are better influences over Trump than truly coming to the bargaining table or discontinuing nuclear advancement.
