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omonatheydidThe commander of U.S. troops in South Korea on Wednesday said North Korea could be plotting to carry out new hostilities, Reuters reported.
"I do worry that there are additional attacks and provocations that are being considered within North Korea," Gen. Walter Sharp said at a Capitol Hill hearing.
Pyongyang is believed to be behind the March 2010 sinking of a South Korean warship and the November shelling of the South's Yeongpyong Island. The two incidents killed 50 people.
International observers believe the transfer of power in Pyongyang could lead to new attacks as part of dictator Kim Jong Il's effort to bolster the domestic status of his youngest son and heir apparent, Kim Jong Un.
"There are some real challenges from North Korea that we need to be prepared to deter, and if deterrence does not work, be prepared to respond to," Sharp said, without specifying what type of response would be in order.
The United States has sought to deter new provocations by holding more joint military maneuvers with South Korea and by pressing China to rein in North Korea (Phil Stewart, Reuters, April 6).
Sharp voiced doubts that Pyongyang would ever agree to permanently shutter its nuclear weapons program, the Yonhap News Agency reported.
"I can talk for the Republic of Korea and our alliance there, is that we do believe that North Korea is continuing to develop their nuclear weapons," the general said. "Kim Jong Il has said that. He has said the importance of that to him, that his plan is to continue to do that. I do not believe that he will give that up."
The Stalinist state's reliance on its nuclear program is viewed as having deepened following a NATO-led air campaign against Libyan regime forces. Pyongyang is thought to believe that strongman Muammar Qadhafi erred in surrendering his nuclear weapons program assets in 2004, leaving him vulnerable to the alliance campaign this year.
"I think Kim Jong Il focuses on regime survival under any terms and counts on his continued development of nuclear capability and these provocative acts in order to be able to have his regime survive," Sharp said (Hwang Doo-hyong, Yonhap News Agency, April 6).
Meanwhile, North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly convened on Thursday as foreign observers watched to see if the younger Kim would be officially named to the government's second most-powerful post, the Associated Press reported.
The son, who is in his 20s, was named a four-star general last year. If he is named vice chairman of the all-powerful National Defense Commission, it would mean the transfer of significant authority from his father, who is the commission's chairman, Dongguk University professor Kim Yong-hyun said.
"For Kim Jong Il, handing over a considerable amount of power to his son could mean a weakening of his own power base," Kim said.
Kim Jong Un is also expected to be named chief commander of North Korea's army in addition to receiving two important additional positions within the North Korean Workers' Party, said Open Radio for North Korea's Ha Tae-keung.
"At that point, the succession movement will pretty much be done," Ha said.
The Dongguk University academic predicted Pyongyang would look in the coming months to improve relations with Washington and Seoul.
"More tension would be a burden for North Korea," Kim said. "It will opt for dialogue rather than confrontation and initiate flexibility" (Hyung-Jin Kim, Associated Press I/Yahoo!News, April 7).
Separately, former President Carter said on Wednesday he intends to use his forthcoming visit to Pyongyang to attempt to relaunch moribund six-party talks focused on North Korean denuclearization, AP reported.
The last round of talks involving China, Japan, Russia, the United States and both Koreas was held in December 2008. Pyongyang later called the effort dead and in May 2009 conducted its second nuclear test; it has more recently indicated its willingness to rejoin the process.
Carter did not say when he would travel to the North. Earlier reports said the trip would occur at the end of April.
The ex-president said he would "try to induce the North Koreans to give up their nuclear weapons."
"What we want is a peace treaty and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and to find out about how we can help with the humanitarian plight of the people who are starving to death," Carter said to an Atlanta audience
Source: globalsecuritynewswire
"I do worry that there are additional attacks and provocations that are being considered within North Korea," Gen. Walter Sharp said at a Capitol Hill hearing.
Pyongyang is believed to be behind the March 2010 sinking of a South Korean warship and the November shelling of the South's Yeongpyong Island. The two incidents killed 50 people.
International observers believe the transfer of power in Pyongyang could lead to new attacks as part of dictator Kim Jong Il's effort to bolster the domestic status of his youngest son and heir apparent, Kim Jong Un.
"There are some real challenges from North Korea that we need to be prepared to deter, and if deterrence does not work, be prepared to respond to," Sharp said, without specifying what type of response would be in order.
The United States has sought to deter new provocations by holding more joint military maneuvers with South Korea and by pressing China to rein in North Korea (Phil Stewart, Reuters, April 6).
Sharp voiced doubts that Pyongyang would ever agree to permanently shutter its nuclear weapons program, the Yonhap News Agency reported.
"I can talk for the Republic of Korea and our alliance there, is that we do believe that North Korea is continuing to develop their nuclear weapons," the general said. "Kim Jong Il has said that. He has said the importance of that to him, that his plan is to continue to do that. I do not believe that he will give that up."
The Stalinist state's reliance on its nuclear program is viewed as having deepened following a NATO-led air campaign against Libyan regime forces. Pyongyang is thought to believe that strongman Muammar Qadhafi erred in surrendering his nuclear weapons program assets in 2004, leaving him vulnerable to the alliance campaign this year.
"I think Kim Jong Il focuses on regime survival under any terms and counts on his continued development of nuclear capability and these provocative acts in order to be able to have his regime survive," Sharp said (Hwang Doo-hyong, Yonhap News Agency, April 6).
Meanwhile, North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly convened on Thursday as foreign observers watched to see if the younger Kim would be officially named to the government's second most-powerful post, the Associated Press reported.
The son, who is in his 20s, was named a four-star general last year. If he is named vice chairman of the all-powerful National Defense Commission, it would mean the transfer of significant authority from his father, who is the commission's chairman, Dongguk University professor Kim Yong-hyun said.
"For Kim Jong Il, handing over a considerable amount of power to his son could mean a weakening of his own power base," Kim said.
Kim Jong Un is also expected to be named chief commander of North Korea's army in addition to receiving two important additional positions within the North Korean Workers' Party, said Open Radio for North Korea's Ha Tae-keung.
"At that point, the succession movement will pretty much be done," Ha said.
The Dongguk University academic predicted Pyongyang would look in the coming months to improve relations with Washington and Seoul.
"More tension would be a burden for North Korea," Kim said. "It will opt for dialogue rather than confrontation and initiate flexibility" (Hyung-Jin Kim, Associated Press I/Yahoo!News, April 7).
Separately, former President Carter said on Wednesday he intends to use his forthcoming visit to Pyongyang to attempt to relaunch moribund six-party talks focused on North Korean denuclearization, AP reported.
The last round of talks involving China, Japan, Russia, the United States and both Koreas was held in December 2008. Pyongyang later called the effort dead and in May 2009 conducted its second nuclear test; it has more recently indicated its willingness to rejoin the process.
Carter did not say when he would travel to the North. Earlier reports said the trip would occur at the end of April.
The ex-president said he would "try to induce the North Koreans to give up their nuclear weapons."
"What we want is a peace treaty and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and to find out about how we can help with the humanitarian plight of the people who are starving to death," Carter said to an Atlanta audience
Source: globalsecuritynewswire
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Date: 2011-04-08 01:04 am (UTC)when u gonna chill the fuck out jw
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Date: 2011-04-08 01:10 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-08 03:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-08 06:04 am (UTC)