Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Mr. President: N. Korea is not Burma


Yes, I agree with Scott.  Burma is an imperfect analogy for north Korea.  The Kim Family Regime is not likely to be enticed to follow Burma's example because it does not believe that what is happening to Burma is at all attractive.  To follow in Burma's footsteps means it will have to open up politically and reform both politically and economically.  While that seems to be a very logical path from our western viewpoint, the north likely assesses that path to be a threat to the survival of the Kim Family Regime which is the sole vital national interest of north Korea.
V/R
Dave

By Scott A. Snyder

November 21, 2012

President Obama’s visit to Burma only a year after the country began embarking on a dramatic but “tenuous” reform path has naturally fed speculation about lessons the leadership in Pyongyang might take from the visit. President Obama highlighted that question for North Korean leaders in his speech at the University of Yangon, issuing a direct challenge to North Korean leaders to “let go of your nuclear weapons and choose the path of peace and progress . . . you will find an extended hand from the United States of America.”

This is the second time this year President Obama has publicly addressed direct messages to the North Korean leadership, following a speech at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul last March in which he reiterated that the United States has no hostile intent toward Pyongyang, that the United States is prepared to take steps toward normalization, and that further provocations will only bring North Korea more isolation.

In response to a question in a speech at CSIS last week in advance of President Obama’s visit, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon provided specifics by stating that if North Korea were to “demonstrate a seriousness of purpose” on denuclearization, then the path of entry into the international community would be available to North Korea.

(Continued at the above link)

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