Saturday marked the 10th anniversary of the landmark deal in which North Korea agreed to abandon its nuclear program in exchange for economic aid and diplomatic concessions. Yet, the agreement has yet to be fulfilled as North Korea quit the related six party talks and halted the denuclearization process.
In fact, earlier last week, Pyongyang declared that it had resumed operations at the Yongbyon nuclear complex and the North Korean government mouthpiece Rodong Sinmun said Saturday that whether or not it uses nuclear weapons depends on the U.S., blaming the “hostile policy” of the U.S. for its intention to pursue nuclear weapons.
Apparently undeterred by international calls urging the communist state against violating U.N. Security Council resolutions, North Korea also continued to make bombastic statements about its intention to launch a long-range rocket. “The more enemy forces will hamper our plan for space development, the more severe our counteraction will be,” said a report by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency, without specifying when the launch would take place.
Pyongyang persisted in characterizing the missile launch as a satellite launch and claimed that it was merely exercising its right to peaceful space development as allowed by international law. “It is an unpardonable provocation” to take issue with the country’s legitimate right to peaceful space development, the KCNA said. North Korea’s official news agency also boasted that the missile technology was developed indigenously, “from A to Z.”
It is not difficult to see where Kim Jong-un is headed with the latest threats. In the past, the North Korea has used missile launches repurposed as satellite launches to demonstrate its missile capabilities. When the missile launches resulted in U.N. sanctions, Pyongyang retaliated with nuclear tests.
North Korea’s Kim should realize that the game has changed quite a bit now and that his gambit may not end well. The United States has been reacting swiftly to the North Korean threats, issuing a flurry of warnings. China, in a significant shift from its previous position, has expressed its displeasure and concerns through different channels.
A senior U.S. defense official told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing said that the U.S. would pursue both diplomacy and pressure against any North Korean missile launch. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry also warned that North Korea would face “severe consequences’ and that more than sanctions may be necessary.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi issued a clear warning on Saturday saying, “War or conflict on the peninsula is good for no one.” At the same time, he called for an early resumption of the stalled six party talks.
Also calling for the resumption of the six party talks was Sung Kim, U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, who said in an interview that Washington is interested in holding exploratory talks with North Korea about resuming the six party talks and that such talks could take place anywhere, including Pyongyang.
While the resumption of the six-party denuclearization talks is vital to the long-term peace and stability in Northeast Asia, Pyongyang’s Kim must be given to understand that the country will face severe consequences if it proceeds with the missile launch or the nuclear test. Washington has been issuing clear warnings and even Beijing has openly expressed its concerns. Seoul, for its part, should not allow the possible cancellation of the upcoming inter-Korean reunion of separated families to muffle its response to Pyongyang’s provocations.
