This argument would be just as (if not more) valid if it advised POTUS to confront Im Jong-seok's history of pro-Pyongyang extremism & ask what choosing him says about Moon Jae-in. Of course, Bolton is a media bête noire; Moon is a media darling.https://t.co/POffMdQidz
That is what Oh Young-jin from the Korea Times thinks:
If there could be lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula after two summits by the end of May, all three protagonists ― President Moon Jae-in, U.S. President Donald Trump and, yes, North Korea’s young dictator Kim Jong-un ― would deserve a piece of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.
True, we would have moral reservations about giving them the award.
Receiving the greatest objections would be Kim, the grandson of the North’s founder, Kim Il-sung, who led a southern invasion at the start of the 1950-53 Korean War. The third-generation dictator in the anachronistic dynasty has demonstrated his disdain for human rights, with gulags, cold-blooded purges and mass killings.
The thirty-something allegedly ordered his agents smear a deadly chemical on the face of his elder brother-in-exile at a busy international airport.
He also had his uncle mowed down by fire from anti-aircraft guns. His father, Kim Jong-il, masterminded numerous terrorist acts, including blowing up a South Korean airliner. Under his watch, and toward the end of his life, the North staged a torpedo attack on the frigate Cheonan, killing 46 South Korean sailors. [Korea Times]
Notice that Oh Young-jin couldn’t write an article without showing his hatred of President Trump:
In Trump’s case, the list of reasons for his disqualification is long, pointing to him being an elected dictator. These include allegedly getting help from an enemy state, Russia, in the election, suppressing freedom of expression, and going back on key international agreements such as the Paris climate accord and the Iran nuclear deal. And he is openly looking down on and antagonizing Muslims at the risk of triggering a clash.
He treats women like sexual playthings. Why he is not on the #MeToo list is a mystery, although it is not entirely inexplicable. Giving him the Nobel Peace Prize is like endorsing Trump’s misogyny and misanthropy.
Trump is an elected dictator? If Trump is an elected dictator then how come Hillary Clinton isn’t being indicted or jailed right now like the Korean left has done to their political opponents? Even more ridiculous is to state President Trump has suppressed freedom of expression. The vast majority of major news networks and newspapers air and publish anti-Trump propaganda against him every day without being shutdown. Protests against President Trump occur regularly without police beating them down. President Trump arguably may be considered a lot of other things, but he is no dictator.
Anyway lets get back at the topic at hand, in my opinion Kim Jong-un should not receive a Nobel Peace Prize because his regime is the one that has created the conflict. If Kim Jong-un receives a Nobel Peace Prize then they should have awarded one to his grandfather Kim Il-sung and Chinese leader Mao Zedong for negotiating an end to the Korean War; which was a war they started.
The fact that Kim Jong-un agreed to visit South Korea this time for the inter-Korean summit is a sign of how serious he is about signing a sanctions busting deal. However, visiting the Peace House at Panmunjom is hardly equivalent to past South Korean leaders being paraded around Pyongyang as propaganda tools:
In this photo released by the North’s Korean Central News Agency, President Moon Jae-in’s special envoy Chung Eui-yong, center left, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang on Monday. Kim is holding a letter from Moon delivered by Chung. Behind Kim is his younger sister, Kim Yo-jong. [YONHAP]South and North Koreas have agreed to hold an inter-Korean summit at the truce village of Panmunjeom at the end of April, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.
Pyongyang also expressed intention to hold talks with Washington over denuclearization, saying it could give up its nuclear weapons if the safety of its regime is guaranteed.
President Moon Jae-in’s special envoys, who visited Pyongyang for two days and met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, announced these agreements upon returning to Seoul.
“The two Koreas decided to hold the third inter-Korean summit at the Peace House in Panmunjeom at the end of April, and will have meetings of working-level officials to discuss details about it,” National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, who led the envoys, said in a press briefing.
“The two Koreas also agreed to set up a hotline between the leaders in an effort to ease military tension and have close discussion. They will have their first phone call before the summit.” [Korea Times]
It seems that the Kim regime is eager to get their sanctions busting agreements to restart the Kaesong Industrial Park and the joint tourism projects going this year. They are even willing to say they may consider denuclearizing in order to get an agreement:
North Korea showed its clear willingness for denuclearized Korean Peninsula, and made it clear that it would have no reason to have nuclear armament if military threats to the country are removed and the safety of its regime is guaranteed, according to Chung.
“Kim said denuclearizing the peninsula is teachings from the ancestors (his grandfather Kim Il-sung and father Kim Jong-il) and there is no change to it,” he said.
The North expressed intention to have candid talks with the United States to discuss denuclearization and to normalize Washington-Pyongyang relations. “The North Korean leader said denuclearization can be the topic of talks with the U.S.,” Chung said.
“He did not demand any specific conditions for talks. He said he wants to be recognized as a serious partner of dialogue,” Chung said.
Pyongyang clearly said while talks are ongoing, it would not carry out military provocations such as nuclear and ballistic missile tests. It was a change from its earlier stance of threatening military actions in opposition to Seoul and Washington resuming joint military drills, which have been delayed until after the PyeongChang Winter Olympics and Paralympics. [Korea Times]
We all know the Kim regime is not going to give up their nuclear weapons. Only apologists and the uninformed think this is actually a possibility. What I think is going on is that in order to get the sanctions busing deal signed with the ROK, the Kim regime needs the Trump administration to agree to it. Declaring they would consider denuclearizing appears to be a pretext to get the United States to agree to a “freeze deal” which would justify the ROK restarting the Kaesong Industrial Park and the joint tourism projects. As I have long said the Kim regime wants a “freeze deal” because it busts sanctions while giving up little or nothing in return.
To further create the facade of how reasonable Kim Jong-un is he has also said he would not condemn the holding of the upcoming US-ROK military exercises:
“Kim said he understands South Korea and the U.S. will have to resume the military exercises in April in a usual scale,” Chung said. “We initially thought Kim would raise an issue of the drills and we would have to make him understand (no more delay or cancellation of the drills is possible), but we didn’t need to do so.” [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but holding the summit in April during the Key Resolve/Foal Eagle military exercises was intentional. I think Kim Jong-un may not have wanted to demand the exercises be cancelled so it doesn’t appear President Moon is giving in to North Korean pressure. This protects President Moon from criticism from the political right in South Korea. This doesn’t mean that Moon won’t later request to President Trump to cancel the exercises in the spirit of peace or whatever other reason he comes up with.
With Kim Jong-un giving the appearance of meeting US demands to talk about denuclearization it appears the Trump administration will have to agree to talks with North Korea. Basically North Korea has flipped the Trump administration’s “Pressure Campaign” against the Kim regime back on the US. Now the Kim regime with the aid of the South Koreans, North Korea apologists, most academics, and the media will be putting maximum pressure on President Trump to agree to a “freeze deal” in return for sanction busting agreements.
This would effectively eliminate all the sanctions and pressure the Trump administration has put on the Kim regime for little to nothing in return. All the while the Kim regime can continue to develop and mass produce the nuclear and missile technology they already have. If the Trump administration agrees to this it is basically deja vu all over again.
That is what a professor from Hankuk University believes:
Professor Kim Jang-ho from Hankuk University believes that for this reason, the detente won’t last. He is also sceptical of President Moon’s motives and doesn’t believe there has been any breakthrough with North Korea.
“President Moon is trying to buy some time so that he can achieve a summit meeting with Kim Jong-un.
“Our president wants to meet him to symbolically say that North Korea is a normal nation and they are capable of talking. It automatically propels him to the list for the Nobel Peace Prize. But the US and Japan will pressure us to go ahead with military exercises as soon as possible, late April maybe.
“I think certainly with those exercises continuing, and they will go ahead definitely before May, we will go from the thaw to tension all over again.”
Many doubt North Korea’s willingness to discuss getting rid of its nuclear weapons with the US. Kim Jong-un has tried to reassure Seoul by saying his missiles are not pointing at South Koreans, they’re pointing instead at the “US aggressors”, and that they could be used to protect all of Korea.
I put it to Professor Bong Young-shik that North Korea would never give up its missiles. The research fellow at Yonsei University disagreed.
“The North Korean regime’s ultimate goal is survival and security,” the expert in North Korea said. [BBC]
You can read more at the link, but before anyone considers President Moon for a Nobel Peace Prize they should realize that when he was the Chief of Staff for former President Roh Moo-hyun, they helped to funnel billions of dollars in aid that allowed the Kim regime to build their nuclear weapons and ICBMs.
You would think though that after the embarrassment of awarding a Nobel Peace Prize to former ROK President Kim Dae-jung the Nobel committee would be weary of awarding one to another ROK president. This is because it was later discovered that the Inter-Korean Summit between Kim Dae-jung and Kim Jong-il was only possible after North Korea received a $500 million dollar bribe.
President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook raise their hands in hurrah after a march in front of the Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul on March 1, 2018. The day marked the 99th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement Day when people started nationwide rallies to demand Korea’s independence from Japanese colonial rule. The Seodaemun Prison is where many independence fighters were jailed and martyred. (Yonhap)
Via a reader tip comes this news that presidential advisor Moon Jung-in has been speculating recently that if President Moon Jae-in asks US forces to leave Korea, they should leave:
Moon Jung-in, special adviser to President Moon Jae-in, speaks during a recent seminar hosted by the National Committee on North Korea in Washington, D.C. / Yonhap
Moon Jung-in, mentor to President Moon Jae-in on foreign and North Korea affairs, often previews Seoul’s policy.
Now under question is his remark in a seminar in Washington, D.C., to the effect that U.S. forces should leave Korea, if its president shows the door. The comment was made in the context of explaining the structure under which the U.S. has wartime control of ROK forces.
The U.S. is said to be resistant to changing the structure, which would make the U.S. general subordinate to the Korean general.
Some experts say the U.S. would rather leave Korea than have its troops under ROK command. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but I would be surprised if the Pentagon signs on to any plan that allows a ROK general to command US forces. ROK generals do not have the experience to command the hi-tech weapons, logistics, communications, and command & control systems that the US military brings to a fight.
This is why in the past it has been reported that if an OPCON change happens the US command will be downgraded to a three-star general in charge of an military organization called KORCOM. ROK generals would take back control of all their forces during wartime, but would have no command authority over KORCOM. Instead KORCOM would support the ROK military as needed.
If President Moon wants US forces out of Korea without explicitly demanding it; requesting that KORCOM fall under the command of ROK general would be the way to do it.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in (L) and Ivanka Trump, the U.S. president’s daughter and senior advisor, walk out of a dinner reception at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Feb. 23, 2018. Ivanka Trump arrived in South Korea earlier in the day for a four-day stay to lead a U.S. delegation to the closing ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, which is scheduled for Feb. 25. (Yonhap)
Is it just me or Kim Yo-jong has a smug face at just about every event she has attended?:
South Korean President Moon Jae-in (L) talks with Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, just before the start of a performance by a North Korean art troupe, in Seoul, on Feb. 11, 2018. (Yonhap)
President Moon Jae-in attended a North Korean art troupe’s concert in Seoul on Sunday, expressing hopes that the reconciliatory mood for inter-Korean dialogue would be maintained going forward.
President Moon and the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un both attended the performance in the evening, marking the fourth time Moon and Kim Yo-jong have met since they greeted each other during the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Friday.
Other members of the North’s high-level delegation were present for the concert, including the North’s ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong-nam.
During talks made just before the performance began, President Moon said the meeting with Yo-jong and the North’s delegation was very important, saying, “the two Koreas should cooperate to make this reconciliatory meeting’s charcoal become a torch.”
The North’s ceremonial head of state, Kim, said in response, “It is very happy and impressive to share such precious times. I would go back with a new note of hope of getting together again, because we created an opportunity to meet frequently.” [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but as far as the performance goes it was choreographed to push the narrative of unification:
Hyon Song-wol, leader of North Korea’s Samjiyon Orchestra, performs during a concert by the North Korean art troupe, at the National Theater of Korea in Seoul, on Feb. 11, 2018. (Yonhap)
The grand finale of the concert was North Korean song, “Let’s Meet Again,” and a common Korean song titled, “Our Wish Is Unification,” both sung together by Seohyun, a member of South Korean pop group Girls’ Generation, and a North Korean female octet.
Seohyun, wearing a short, white minidress and high-heeled shoes, and the North’s octet ended the concert, performing in perfect harmony the song with a theme reflecting the two Koreas’ desire for reunification.
The performers hugged as the audience gave them a standing ovation.
Another highlight of the concert was the surprise appearance of Hyon Song-wol, head of the Samjiyon Orchestra, on the stage.
“I came here to the South by crossing the border twice. In the process I felt saddened by the reality that Pyongyang and Seoul are located so close but feel so far away from each other,” she said. “I’m in a bad condition because I have a sore throat from Gangneung, but please applaud me a little bit more loudly than other singers so I can save face as the director,” Hyon said, resulting in thunderous applause.
She then sang a North Korean song titled “Paektu and Halla Are My Fatherland.” Her solo performance was later joined by the North’s orchestra and female singers. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but the narrative of unification is likely being used to justify holding a near term Inter-Korean Summit, make agreements to reopen Kaesong and the Kumgang Resort Tours, which will ultimately make ineffective the sanctions on North Korea.
South Korean singer Seo Hyun (C) sings the song, “Our Wish Is Unification,” with singers of North Korea’s Samjiyon Orchestra, during a concert by the North Korean art troupe at the National Theater of Korea in Seoul on Feb. 11, 2018. The art troupe visited South Korea to celebrate the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, which is under way in the northeastern alpine town of PyeongChang. (Yonhap)
South Korean President Moon Jae-in (C) and first lady Kim Jung-sook (R) pose with Kim Yong-nam, North Korea’s ceremonial head of state, during a reception for ranking foreign delegates to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in the host town of PyeongChang, east of Seoul, on Feb. 9, 2018, hours before the sporting event’s opening ceremony. (Yonhap)
