North Korea 'will not hit back' over Yeonpyeong drills

[nadinbrzezinski]

North Korea 'will not hit back' over Yeonpyeong drills

Source: BBC

North Korea 'will not hit back' over Yeonpyeong drills

The threat of a North Korean response has caused anxiety in the South

North Korea says it will not retaliate despite "reckless provocations" from the South, which held live-fire drills on the flashpoint island of Yeonpyeong.

The North shelled the island last month after similar drills and had threatened more retaliation this time.

But state media quoted the army as saying it was "not worth reacting".

Meanwhile US politician Bill Richardson, on a visit to the North, says it has agreed to allow UN inspectors back into the country.

The New Mexico governor, who is in Pyongyang in an unofficial capacity, said he had been told during meetings that members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would be allowed renewed access to a uranium enrichment facility.


Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12039477


Thank you Governor Richardson. There are things that went behind close doors that helped defuse this...

Thank you SIR.

Oh on a side note. this is the kind of diplomatic note that DOES NOT GO into the low level classification system that wiki leaks came from. But a leak of this particular event would kill any chance of defusing in the future. This is what diplomatic pouches are for.

[Pathwalker]

1. North Korea will only deal with Bill Richardson - I love it!

We can all breathe a little safer now that Kim Jung ILL has gotten his attention fix. Truly a very dangerous man.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. Sooner or later he will go off the edge

and that is the true danger.

[Ozymanithrax]

2. Backdown from DEFCON five...

We owe a thanks to Governor Richardson for convincing the North Koreans that war was not in their interest.

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. You mean back down from DEFCON 1 to at least 3?

Five is the lowest of conditions.

:-) and yes we owe Richardson a debt that we will never fully appreciate.

[Ozymanithrax]

5. I get numbers mixed up.

However, I was refering to the common television trope...

Defcon five
In some movies, the phrase "Defcon Five" is used to refer to the highest state of alert.

It is wrong, but still a TVism.

[nadinbrzezinski]

6. Hey on the bright side we are not looking

at them tomahawks flying through the sky...

[Ozymanithrax]

7. As long as it is one of these, I don't mind.

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. Ok this twitter made me smile

Koreas, just simmer down. WWIII isn't very holiday-ee. Let's go to the mall, get a Starbucks & talk things out? Decafe for North please.

[KharmaTrain]

9. The Real World Grand Duchy Of Fenwick...

While batshit crazy, the Pyongyang regime (whoever is in charge) isn't suicidal. Even with a couple of nukes, they know they're not the military match not only of the U.S. but South Korea in specific. While we saw how they can launch missiles and create some havoc, they couldn't sustain any war...especially without the blessing of China or some other major benefactor.

What we're seeing again is a call for attention...amp up the tensions in hopes of gaining some kind of payoff to go away quietly...at least for a little while. With little to offer the world except for "peace" this is one of the few cards in their deck and its played to ensure the leadership's survival.

I'm not so certain there was any damage in the Wiki cables as there are few secrets among the various intel agencies. The relationship between China and NK have been strained for a long time. China and Russia are the country's lifelines for food and energy...pissing off either country is not a smart move. The value of the cables remain more historical and anectdotal evidence as none of the information contained notes or memos from the major players in any of these countries.

North Korea got their attention and who knows what deals were done under the table to "calm" them down. I'm sure there will be another incident in a few months with yet another round of hand wringing followed by some quiet resolution.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. And one of these days we will get a war

it will get to that point. No, the N. Koreans cannot sustain anything for more than a month, best case, but they can still do quite a bit of damage.

Best case in that case, everybody stays out.

Worst case, guns of august.

[sabrina 1]

11. The North Koreans are not stupid. I didn't think they would

retaliate. They have shown in the past that they will threaten, when they feel threatened, but there was no way they were going to start a nuclear war. They most likely know that the West would have loved that, they would get to use some of their nukes. If you've been watching them for any length of time, you would have to have known that they would never give in to provocation that would never give their 'enemies' what they perceive they wanted.

They play better mind games than eg, the Bush Administration. Clinton was working well with N.Korea, which is probably why they are willing to talk to Richardson. It was Bush's dumb cowboy act that created these problems to begin with.

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. IT started in 1999 when they said that

the armistice no longer applied

Reality is... sooner or later they will go over the edge.