Friday, April 19, 2013

I Hope for the De-Kimunisation of the Peninsula

I actually have little problem with talking to North Korea. As long as we don't let that interfere with the regime dying.

North Korea wants to talk--with conditions:

North Korea offered the United States and South Korea a list of conditions on Thursday for talks, including the lifting of U.N. sanctions, signaling a possible end to weeks of warlike hostility on the Korean peninsula. ...

"The denuclearization of the Korean peninsula can begin with the removal of the nuclear war tools dragged in by the U.S. and it can lead to global nuclear disarmament," it added. ...

The North's commission also called for an end to military exercises such as the annual U.S.-South Korean drills that began in early March and are due to run until the end of April.

The North Koreans reportedly also asked for a pony.

I actually have no problem with talking to the North Koreans. Not that I think we can talk them into anything. Indeed, I worry we'll forget that talks are a means to an objective rather than the objective itself, and that we'll agree to anything just to get the lovely signing ceremony with wax seals and ribbons and toasts all around celebrating peace in our time.

But if we talk to keep North Korea from lashing out in the hope they can get the big pay day, while letting them die, I'm fine.

Can we trust Kerry to talk for the right reasons?