Trump says 'only one thing will work' with North Korea

[rooster59]

Trump says 'only one thing will work' with North Korea

By Jeff Mason

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump enters the East Room to host an event to commemorate Hispanic Heritage Month at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 6, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said "only one thing will work" in dealing with North Korea after previous administrations had talked to Pyongyang without results.

 

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid," Trump said in a tweet. "...Hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, making fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

 

Trump did not make clear to what he was referring, but his comments seemed to be a further suggestion that military action was on his mind.

 

The president has previously said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary to protect itself and its allies from Pyongyang's nuclear threats.

 

Earlier this week, during a meeting with top U.S. military leaders and their spouses, Trump told reporters it was the "calm before the storm." Asked for clarification then on what he meant, Trump said: "You'll find out."

 

Speaking to reporters on Saturday ahead of a trip to North Carolina, Trump said he had nothing more to clarify.

 

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders referred to Iran and North Korea the following day when asked about Trump's "calm before the storm" comments.

 

Asked on Saturday about Trump's tweet, Sanders said she had nothing to add to the president's comments.

 

The Pentagon referred a question for clarification to the White House and said the Defence Department's job was to "present the president military options and carry out orders."

 

Trump repeatedly has made clear his distaste for dialogue with North Korea. On Sunday he dismissed the idea of talks as a waste of time, a day after Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Washington was maintaining open lines of communication with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's government.

 

Trump said on Saturday that he had a good relationship with his secretary of state despite some disagreements.

 

"We have a very good relationship. We disagree on a couple of things. Sometimes I’d like him to be a little bit tougher, but other than that we have a very good relationship,” he said.

 

A Russian lawmaker on Friday was quoted saying North Korea was preparing to test a long-range missile that it believes can reach the west coast of the United States. Anton Morozov, a member of the Russian lower house of parliament's international affairs committee, was part of a Russian delegation that visited Pyongyang from Oct. 2-6, according to Russian RIA news agency.

 

North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile programs have driven up tensions in the region and around the world in recent months, particularly after it conducted a test explosion of what it said was a hydrogen bomb.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-10-08

[darksidedog]

I'm pretty sure Kim will be no more concerned about Donalds latest burst of hot air than he has been so far. Given the potential damage and loss of life in Seoul, he knows a military strike is extremely unlikely.Tillerson has by far the better idea, which is to find some sort of diplomatic solution, regardless of how difficult it is to find.

[LannaGuy]

27 minutes ago, darksidedog said:

I'm pretty sure Kim will be no more concerned about Donalds latest burst of hot air than he has been so far. Given the potential damage and loss of life in Seoul, he knows a military strike is extremely unlikely.Tillerson has by far the better idea, which is to find some sort of diplomatic solution, regardless of how difficult it is to find.

Bullies don't 'get' diplomatic solutions. Simply put a red line and enforce it.

[oxo1947]

2 minutes ago, LannaGuy said:

Bullies don't 'get' diplomatic solutions. Simply put a red line and enforce it.

1/ Where would you like to draw that red line

2/ How would you enforce it...

[LannaGuy]

Just now, oxo1947 said:

1/ Where would you like to draw that red line

2/ How would you enforce it...

1/ No firing of missiles outside your area

2/ Consequence is escalated up from total blockade (if China gets on board) to taking out their missile facilities 

 

Sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya ain't going to work and he won't stop

[ezzra]

Yeah.. the big stick, right on the behinds on that little big rocket man...

[BuaBS]

Trumps retoric is becoming worse , I hope Kim keeps his finger tightly on the trigger.

So the 6 month of DDoS on NK didn't work , Russia just made a new internet connection to NK .

Edited October 8, 2017 by BuaBS

[baboon]

35 minutes ago, LannaGuy said:

1/ No firing of missiles outside your area

2/ Consequence is escalated up from total blockade (if China gets on board) to taking out their missile facilities 

 

Sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya ain't going to work and he won't stop

But then nor is 'We can have and use any type of weapons we want whenever we want but you can't. Because we say so.'

[LannaGuy]

4 minutes ago, baboon said:

But then nor is 'We can have and use any type of weapons we want whenever we want but you can't. Because we say so.'

 

But your logic is flawed unless the 'we' starts firing over Japan and is in direct contradiction to international law/UN etc.  

[boomerangutang]

From reading the OP, it looks like a series of 'surgical strikes' is imminent, and soon.

 

Surely, there is a large double ping-pong table-sized relief map of N.Korea in the bowels of the Pentagon.  US top brass, and probably Trump and Pence, are standing around that map and pointing to all the spots they'd love to send cruise missiles to.  The US also has some gnarly 'bunker busting' bombs.  Some are tipped with spent U, which is hard/dense enough to penetrate meters underground (through reinforced concrete) before detonating. 

 

At least one was used in the 2nd Iraq war - though it blew up an underground shelter where a lot of civilians were holed up.   Years have gone by since that war, and the Pentagon budget has inexorably increased, so you can bet there are even more awesome bunker-busting bombs in Uncle Sam's arsenal, .....as well as Daisy Cutter/MOABs.   

 

It's v. doubtful the US would use N bombs in an initial conflict.  It would only use nukes if N.Korea were stupid enough to send out whatever nukes it had.   

 

 

[baboon]

2 minutes ago, LannaGuy said:

 

But your logic is flawed unless the 'we' starts firing over Japan and is in direct contradiction to international law/UN etc.  

There is nothing illegal about a military testing its weapons systems. 

Bear in mind that the good folks screaming 'Firing missiles over Japan!!!' omit the part about the missiles being in outer space at the time...

[LannaGuy]

2 minutes ago, baboon said:

There is nothing illegal about a military testing its weapons systems. 

Bear in mind that the good folks screaming 'Firing missiles over Japan!!!' omit the part about the missiles being in outer space at the time...

 

Direct conflict with the United Nations’ Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)

[baboon]

Just now, LannaGuy said:

 

Direct conflict with the United Nations’ Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)

Which they are not a signatory of...

[BuaBS]

5 hours ago, boomerangutang said:

US top brass, and probably Trump and Pence, are standing around that map and pointing to all the spots they'd love to send cruise missiles to.

NK top brass and Kim , are standing around a map and pointing to all the spots they'd love to hit for retaliation.

[boomerangutang]

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

I'm pretty sure Kim will be no more concerned about Donalds latest burst of hot air than he has been so far. Given the potential damage and loss of life in Seoul, he knows a military strike is extremely unlikely.Tillerson has by far the better idea, which is to find some sort of diplomatic solution, regardless of how difficult it is to find.

I don't agree.  Donald is very eager to do pre-emptive strikes, .....and soon. 

 

                    You and I may agree that cooler heads like Tillerson should be leading interactions with NK, but the fact remains, the US prez is the most powerful decision-maker in the most militarily powerful country in world history.  We don't like that scenario, and we certainly don't give Trump any points for wisdom, but that's the sad state of affairs in the US.    Miserable times for N.Koreans ahead.  Though, most N.Koreans who survive the war will come out better.   

 

        Tons of foreign aid will pour into the country, and the people (hopefully) won't be saddled with oppressive leadership.  Most Koreans over 30 will have a v. tough time dealing with their psychic wounds.   Yet hopefully, younger generations can adjust to being able to think freely. 

[LannaGuy]

8 minutes ago, baboon said:

Which they are not a signatory of...

 

Wrong!  They, signed it, and withdrew.

 

The world cannot have rogue nations firing missiles over other countries.  I'm shocked you defend it.

Edited October 8, 2017 by LannaGuy

[boomerangutang]

7 minutes ago, baboon said:

There is nothing illegal about a military testing its weapons systems. 

Bear in mind that the good folks screaming 'Firing missiles over Japan!!!' omit the part about the missiles being in outer space at the time...

If I wave a sword over your head, it might frighten you.   But then I can say, "don't worry. I was waving the sword in space, high over your head.  What's the big deal?"

[midas]

1 hour ago, LannaGuy said:

1/ No firing of missiles outside your area

2/ Consequence is escalated up from total blockade (if China gets on board) to taking out their missile facilities 

 

Sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya ain't going to work and he won't stop

 

But sometimes " sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya " is considerably preferable to killing millions of innocent people in countries that are purportedly America's allies and rendering huge areas of planet Earth unlivable for a very long time

[LannaGuy]

16 minutes ago, midas said:

 

But sometimes " sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya " is considerably preferable to killing millions of innocent people in countries that are purportedly America's allies and rendering huge areas of planet Earth unlivable for a very long time

 

That is true.... if it worked and both sides enjoyed the singing. Appeasement should have been a lesson well learned in WW2.

Edited October 8, 2017 by LannaGuy

[baboon]

2 minutes ago, LannaGuy said:

 

Wrong!  They were, signed it, and withdrew.

 

The world cannot have rogue nations firing missiles over other countries.  I'm shocked you defend it.

Signed it and withdrew, as was their right under the terms of the treaty.

The world also cannot have nations armed to the teeth throwing their weight around and holding other nations to standards they have no intention of keeping to themselves. 

[boomerangutang]

6 minutes ago, BuaBS said:

NK top brass and Kim , are standing around a map and pointing to all the spots they'd love to hit for retaliation.

Except they don't have the capacity.  They may be able to hit Kodiak island if they're lucky, but all they'd kill there would be a couple of bears and a fisherman.

 

Remember the Iraqi wars?  Not long ago.  Saddam had the world believing he had the 3rd or 4th mightiest army in the world.  He had scuds.  He (supposedly) had a million man army.  He had hundreds of the latest/best Russian tanks.    He had an air force supplied by, and trained by the Russians.   

 

How effective was his military?  They were able to drive down to Kuwait City and take it over.  But a 200 man biker gang could have done that.  When the US-lead 'Coalition' went in there with guns blazing, the entire weight of the Iraqi Army couldn't do any more harm than your Aunt may with a sockful of nickels.  First their air force was knocked out without them firing a shot.  Then their hundreds of Russian tanks were knocked out like a carnival plastic duck shoot.  Not one bullet got within a quarter mile of any attacking US tanks.  

 

That sort of scenario is going to be on the minds of Pentagon brass.  Is the N.Korean military a paper tiger or a soggy paper tiger?  I think the world will find out before Thanksgiving.

[baboon]

7 minutes ago, boomerangutang said:

If I wave a sword over your head, it might frighten you.   But then I can say, "don't worry. I was waving the sword in space, high over your head.  What's the big deal?"

I would presume that if I hoofed you in the goolies while you were waving the sword at me, others would recognise my action as a legitimate act of self defence and you would not then be crying '...but, but how DARE you do such a thing?'

[LannaGuy]

4 minutes ago, baboon said:

Signed it and withdrew, as was their right under the terms of the treaty.

The world also cannot have nations armed to the teeth throwing their weight around and holding other nations to standards they have no intention of keeping to themselves. 

 

Do you know how many nations are against NK's actions?  100s

 

The UN was started to END such conflicts but you defend a rogue nation that now steps outside the Treaty?  I must say I am STUNNED 

[LannaGuy]

2 minutes ago, baboon said:

I would presume that if I hoofed you in the goolies while you were waving the sword at me, others would recognise my action as a legitimate act of self defence and you would not then be crying '...but, but how DARE you do such a thing?'

 

So we AGREE North Korea needs a kick in the goolies as it's waving it's sword and threatening to Nuke the USA.  Thank you.

[Kieran00001]

1 hour ago, LannaGuy said:

1/ No firing of missiles outside your area

2/ Consequence is escalated up from total blockade (if China gets on board) to taking out their missile facilities 

 

Sitting in a circle singing Kumbaya ain't going to work and he won't stop

 

Taking out their missile facilities would have been done long ago if the intelligence did not tell them the most likely outcome would be an allout attack on South Korea, Seoul is just seconds away from North Korean missiles, chemical and biological weapons, nobody wants to see enormous loss of life in South Korea just for Americans to save face, unless NK make the first move the most likely move by the Americans is to just talk.

[LannaGuy]

Just now, Kieran00001 said:

 

Taking out their missile facilities would have been done long ago if the intelligence did not tell them the most likely outcome would be an allout attack on South Korea, Seoul is just seconds away from North Korean missiles, chemical and biological weapons, nobody wants to see enormous loss of life in South Korea just for Americans to save face, unless NK make the first move the most likely move by the Americans is to just talk.

 

Agreed and you don't observe NK making the first move?  they push that boundary daily?  They have said they will destroy USA  bla,bla,bla

 

Draw the red line - Obama drew it then wet his pants, draw it and enforce it through UN

[Kieran00001]

17 minutes ago, boomerangutang said:

If I wave a sword over your head, it might frighten you.   But then I can say, "don't worry. I was waving the sword in space, high over your head.  What's the big deal?"

 

By your logic North Korea has the right to defend themselves from the 50 plus years of US threats.

[baboon]

3 minutes ago, LannaGuy said:

 

So we AGREE North Korea needs a kick in the goolies as it's waving it's sword and threatening to Nuke the USA.  Thank you.

Threatening to retaliate, not launch a preemptive strike.

[LannaGuy]

Just now, baboon said:

Threatening to retaliate, not launch a preemptive strike.

 

Last time I looked no country was firing missiles over NK as they have done over Japan. They are the aggressor. 

[boomerangutang]

One of the first things the US will do, if planning attacks (which it is), ...is to fly a few sorties over N.Korea. 

They may even use a few drones.   

 

What that does is activate N.Korean defense mechanisms.  N.Koreans will therefore be conveniently showing where their radar and other defense installations are.  It will also indicate which areas are deemed most important to N.Koreans.   For example, if they have an arms depot, a nuke facility, or a hardened bunker where Kim will hide, those sorts of places will have added defensive/radar installations around.

 

Pentagon planners will be putting little red flags (or check marks) on their maps - knowing where to hit first.