One Big Missile Measuring Contest
Kim Jong Il may not really be capable of traipsing around the remote area near the Musudan-ri launch site, but the point here is that his regime wants us to believe its hints and threats. As little regard as Kim Jong Il has for U.N. weapons inspectors and resolutions, you have to ask yourself why they still bother to tell fibs like this:
The preparations for launching experimental communications satellite Kwangmyongsong-2 by means of delivery rocket Unha-2 are now making brisk headway at Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground in Hwadae County, North Hamgyong Province.
When this satellite launch proves successful, the nation’s space science and technology will make another giant stride forward in building an economic power. [KCNA]
I know what you’re thinking — someone is finally meeting that pent-up demand for satellite broadcasts of “Song of General Kim Il Sung.” If only the North Koreans realized what Iran would pay them to launch a satellite to broadcast Koranic suras. There are always skeptics, of course:
“It’s really absurd and funny for North Korea, a country unable to feed its own people, to say it is developing a space program,” said Kim Tae-woo, a senior analyst at the government-funded Korea Institute for Defense Analysis. [N.Y. Times]
And if the North Koreans launch anyway? The South Koreans continue to hint at sanctions, and the U.S. government is trying to sound like it has a pair:
In the event Pyongyang nonetheless fires a missile, the U.S. plans to intercept it. North Korea is believed to be planning to fire a missile over Japan and drop it in the Pacific, as it did with a Taepodong-1 missile in August 1998. Defense Secretary Robert Gates at a press conference on Feb. 10 said if North Korea test-fires a missile at the U.S. mainland, the U.S. would intercept it. U.S. Pacific Command is deploying gunships in forward positions to monitor North Korean moves and shoot the missile down.
In the third stage, the U.S. plans to convene a UN Security Council session immediately and discuss resuming sanctions against North Korea. After a missile test in October 2006, the UNSC banned any additional nuclear and missile test and called on the North to return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty under the provisions of Article 41, Chapter 7 of the UN Charter. Article 41 of the UN Charter has the effect of international law and is powerful second only to Article 42 that stipulates the possible use of force.
“The UN Security Council has repeatedly convened to review Resolution 1718 against North Korea,” said a diplomatic source in Washington. “Once the council is convened, it could adopt a resolution for additional sanctions.” [Chosun Ilbo]
I’ll believe that when I see it, and what’s more, if the Obama Administration actually tries to enforce sanctions that really stab at the regime’s finances — and actually leave them in place until the North Koreans perform — I’ll be the first to admit that they have more spine than Bush’s people did. I’m still waiting for the day when someone tries to negotiate with North Korea on any terms other than its own. Coming to the table with some leverage we’re willing and able to use would be a very good start for this administration.
Related: The IHT has this run-down of North Korea’s various missiles, including a new medium range model.