Koreas Set Bold Goals: Peace by Year's End and No Nuclear Arms

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: New York Times



SEOUL, South Korea — The leaders of North and South Korea agreed on Friday to work to remove all nuclear weapons from the Korean Peninsula and, by this year, declare an official end to the Korean War that ravaged the nations from 1950 to 1953.

At a historic summit meeting that marked the first time a North Korean leader had set foot in the South, the leaders vowed to negotiate a peace treaty to replace a truce that has kept an uneasy peace on the divided Korean Peninsula for more than six decades, while ridding it of nuclear weapons.

“The South and the North confirmed their joint goal of realizing a Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons through complete denuclearization,” read a statement signed by North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, and the South’s president, Moon Jae-in, following their summit at the border village of Panmunjom.

The meeting between Mr. Kim and Mr. Moon was marked by some surprisingly candid moments but also sweeping pledges, with Mr. Kim saying, “I came here to put an end to the history of confrontation.”

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/world/asia/north-korea-south-kim-jong-un.html

---

65 years.

[DetlefK]

1. There are rumors that NK no longer has the ability to do nuclear tests:

NK did nuclear tests underground below a special mountain. But a few months ago, geologists noticed weird earthquakes coming from NK. They deduced that the tunnels under that mountain had collapsed for good, rendering it unusable for further tests.

And NK has by simple geography no alternative sites for testing nukes.

[BumRushDaShow]

3. I saw those reports as well

They are at the point where they could "save face" by noting that they have "successfully built and tested" nukes (and thus have "mastered" the tech) but "choose to bring about 'peace' on the peninsula".

If this is able to move to fruition, there will be a big disconnect among the young there who grew up under their system vs Kim Jung-Un, who is more cosmopolitan and knows full well how the rest of the world lives. When you look at what happened to the 2 biggest countries that embraced Communism - Russia is pretty much oligarchical capitalist now and China even has controlled capitalism (where their workers build for the world vs for the state).

[Sophiegirl]

4. Yet...

There are very few reports of that. I saw something a couple of days ago, but nothing since.

[BumRushDaShow]

10. There were reports that hinted at it including one 6 months ago

REUTERS
October 12, 2017 / 6:25 PM / 6 months ago
Latest North Korea earthquake a sign of instability at nuclear test site-experts

Christine Kim

SEOUL (Reuters) - A series of tremors and landslides near North Korea’s nuclear test base likely mean the country’s sixth and largest blast has destabilized the region, and the Punggye-ri nuclear site may not be used for much longer to test nuclear weapons, experts say.

A small quake was detected early on Friday near the North’s nuclear test site, South Korea’s weather agency said, but unlike quakes associated with nuclear tests, it did not appear to be manmade. The tremor was the latest in a string of at least three shocks to be observed since Pyongyang’s Sept. 3 nuclear test, which caused a 6.3 magnitude earthquake. Friday’s quake was a magnitude 2.7 with a depth of 3 km in North Hamgyong Province in North Korea, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) measured the quake at 2.9 magnitude at a depth of 5 km.

The series of quakes has prompted experts and observers to suspect the last test - which the North claimed to be of a hydrogen bomb - may have damaged the mountainous location in the northwest tip of the country, where all of North Korea’s six nuclear tests were conducted.

“The explosion from the Sept. 3 test had such power that the existing tunnels within the underground testing site might have caved in,” said Kim So-gu, head researcher at the Korea Seismological Institute. “I think the Punggye-ri region is now pretty saturated. If it goes ahead with another test in this area, it could risk radioactive pollution.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles-quake/latest-north-korea-earthquake-a-sign-of-instability-at-nuclear-test-site-experts-idUSKBN1CH35U

[Sophiegirl]

20. I saw something a few days ago online

But no MSM reported it. If the underground testing facilities have collapsed, wouldn’t that make for headline news. Especially if it prevents NK from testing more missiles? Why the silence? I’m not for conspiracy thinking, but this seems to be a pretty significant event. So not reported on? Why not?

[BumRushDaShow]

21. Maybe because

most people have no idea where "Korea" is on a map unless they are a vet who fought there (and those folks are in the 80s and older) or were stationed there or traveled there, and probably don't care as long as they are not in any "line of fire".

If anything, I think the European media have been more involved with monitoring and reporting on it. And as a note, CNBC had picked up the Reuters story back in October and reported on it, with a follow-up. I think this current and sudden "interest" and "reporting" is mainly because of what is happening now between the countries.

[underpants]

6. Interesting. I missed those reports

Makes sense with the sudden moves to end testing.

[nitpicker]

2. Koreas make nuclear pledge after summit

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-43921385

Koreas make nuclear pledge after summit

7 minutes ago

The leaders of North and South Korea have agreed to work to rid the peninsula of nuclear weapons after holding an historic summit.

The announcement was made by the North's Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in of South Korea after talks at the border.

The two also agreed to push towards turning the armistice that ended the Korean War in 1953 into a peace treaty this year.
(snip)

[spinbaby]

5. Good news for a change

[progressoid]

7. Trump will take credit.

[Vinca]

9. That's my fear, but in some sense Trump might be the reason.

Kim has been "out crazied" by Trump. He must realize Don is nuts enough to wipe North Korea off the planet.

[Lonestarblue]

16. Credit should go to President Moon, not doofus Trump.

He ran his campaign on negotiating peace with North Korea, and he is the one to invite North Korea to the Olympics (where stupid Mike Pence snubbed the NK delegates). He is the one who issued the invitation to Kim to meet, which they just did. I suspect there have been behind the scenes sharing of South Korea’s economic success. North Korea may be starving to death by now, not that Kim would care, but citizens who are too weak to work are a problem. Trump has done nothing but be president at a time when Kim was ready to make peace with the south out of necessity.

[progressoid]

17. Yep. The Olympics event was a great ice breaker.

[ailsagirl]

22. I thought he already had (I heard on the radio that it was dump's doing)

If he does, and I have no doubt he will, we'll never hear the end of it.

I hope this successfully moves forward and results in no nukes.

Admittedly I am a bit of a skeptic, but I hope I'm wrong.

[ehrnst]

8. Klinger can go home!

I guess.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. ...

Celebratory cigar!

[paleotn]

12. I'm a bit skeptical....

Actually more than a bit. What's the catch? Why the sudden and complete about face after decades of intransigents? I know about the NK test sight, but there are other experts, primarily in the west that conclude the site can still be made operational again, if it isn't already. The latest Kim is up to something, just like his father and grandfather, and peace isn't the primary objective in my opinion.

[Sam McGee]

13. Agreed . . . but . . . what if . . .

I don't trust Kim The Young-Un. I'm not optimistic.

HOWEVER -- what if -- just what if -- he has seen the world outside N Korea. . . what if he sees the doddering old fools who make up his subordinate leadership . . . and what if he has said to himself "Self, enough of this horseshit. Let's join the real world."

I mean, an occasional miracle happens.

[longship]

14. Their last nuke test destroyed their test site.

Their first nuclear tests were clearly sub-nuclear in yield. My conjecture is that DPRK had not solved the initiator problem, the mechanism that provides the necessary slow neutrons to get the chain reaction started within the sub-microsecond time domain before the assembly blows itself apart before the chain gets going. No slow neutrons? No nuclear detonation. All one has is a dirty bomb, a conventional explosion.

The last test was clearly a nuclear detonation, 100Ktons. That's a rather big A-bomb. DPRK claimed that it was a fusion bomb. I don't know about that, but the science will tell, especially if reports that the test site is close to collapse are true. I wouldn't be surprised as 100Ktons is a rather large A-bomb.

My estimation is that the DPRK is willing to give up on their nuke aspirations because they no longer have the ability to continue to test them. A mere six tests, one which ran away and destroyed their test site, does not instill confidence. Mr. Kim is obviously aware of these facts.

[BumRushDaShow]

15. If you look historically

with he and his father & with various Presidents of S. Korea, they have attempted to do "cultural" exchanges, on and off for the past 2 decades. But something always seemed to torpedo the efforts and they went back to square one.

I think what is different this time was the ballistic missile and nuke tests that apparently (somewhat) "succeeded" (probably thanks to China), and once that acknowledgment went around the world, they had an "out" (especially if their test site is pretty much unusable). Couple this with the Olympics appearance, and the opportunity had presented itself.

The problem at this point will probably be his generals and any hardcore Communist Party members.

Here is a good timeline to illustrate what I'm talking about -

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-15292674

[Nay]

27. I suspect NK will expect cleanup funds and help with their now-irradiated testing

site. IOW, "we fucked our home up, now we want you to help us."

[Javaman]

18. I'm still waiting for the "but". nt

[Xolodno]

19. Note...and end of the war, means also...

...issues for our bases there. And, if they denuclearize....sanctions start to look fairly petty.

[tclambert]

23. Who would have thought Kim Jong Un might win a Nobel Peace Prize?

Of course, if he does, Trump will insist he deserves a piece of it.

[roamer65]

24. Welcome to Sino-Russian hegemony.

Beijing’s edict is for them to make peace and eventually reunify. Korea will then be under the Sino-Russian sphere of influence when US troops are asked to leave.

[Adrahil]

25. Yes.....

One result of a formal peace is that US forces will be asked to leave. That is potentially dangerous.

[Mike Nelson]

26. North Korea has...

...no intention of giving up nukes. if there was an accident, they will rebuild the site or prepare another - to build and maintain bombs. Their goal is to get rid of US military in the area and cozy up to South Korea... the North and China see an opportunity to take back the South... and The Donald thinks we spend too much money controlling South Korea.