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The North Korean Nuclear Threat




Enviado por fermifa



    The following paper will analyze the
    historical factors that led to the North Korean nuclear threat.
    The production of plutonium and nuclear bombs by North Korea
    has become a defensive strategy to protect themselves from all
    external influences of other countries and also, it allows
    North Korea to protect its sovereignty which is something that
    had never been done before.

    The entire subject can be summarized as a conflict
    between the politics of Washington which argues that North
    Korea is deliberately producing nuclear weapons, and those of
    Pyongyang discussing that the United States is focused on world
    domination relating back to their failure on taking over during
    the Korean War. In order to better understand the current
    situation, it is paramount to analyze the crisis, its
    causes, and victims.

    North Korea is located in North Eastern Asia and is
    surrounded by South Korea, China, and
    Russia. Japan is locates 100 miles South East of the country
    divided by the Korean Strait. The country’s population is
    twenty-five million and its main form of government is
    communism. North Korea was created after the national
    liberation of Japanese control in
    1945.

    In this year it was territorially divided from South
    Korea due to political differences and the support of foreign
    countries. The United States and Japan supported a democracy
    for the South, while Russia and China supported a communist
    government.

    The most important point of analysis to understand the
    North Korean situation begins by observing the Korean society
    and the role of this group in its history prior to the 1945
    territorial division. Throughout the nineteenth century Korea
    was invaded by Russia, China, and Japan in various occasions.
    For many centuries these countries took advantage of the weaker
    country and tried to impose their culture and
    governments.

    The Korean society seemed to be very passive in
    relation to all other Asian countries who were constantly
    concerned about the situation of Korea.

    According to author Young Whan Kihl, at the time when
    Japan controlled the country they imposed a strong militarist
    rule that totally disfranchised and exploited the Korean
    people.

    This rule lasted for thirty-six years, contributing to
    increased nationalism which led to anti-Japanese activities in
    order to keep alive the dream of Korea’s independence. In
    this time of confusion and chaos, and with the final partition
    of Korea made by the allies in 1945, the homogeneity of the
    country including traditions, values, and a very rich culture
    were being divided.

    The division of Korea by the thirty-eight parallel was
    seen as a temporary limit for the inhabitants of the country.
    They were more aware of the issue of independence and the
    rebirth of a new country than with the fact that their own land
    had been divided into two.

    Only when the United Nations began to organize
    separate elections for the two states did the idea of a divided
    Nation invade the thoughts of the society.

    At the same time, with the possibility of a Cold War
    between the United States and the U.S.S.R., Korea was seen as a
    strategic military location in the world. For the first time in
    Korea’s history, a newly divided country had to work
    separately in order to achieve a common solution for this new
    conflict. Thus, North and South Koreans did not pay attention
    to the problem of reunification. By 1953, offensives from both
    countries began and allied forces to each of the Koreas further
    pushed the conflict for territorial earnings. In summary, North
    Korea, China, and the Soviet Union were at war against South
    Korea, the United States, and Japan.

    The nuclear threat arose when the North Korean
    government began to develop a large nuclear facility in the
    city of Yongbyon along with three smaller facilities that were
    producing plutonium, the main component for the construction of
    atomic bombs.

    The country admitted to have nuclear weapons and to be
    working on building up its arsenal. The primary reason for the
    North Koreans to begin this development was to deter South
    Korea, the United States, and Japan from invading their
    country.

    Since this moment, drastic measures all around the
    world were taken in order to control the continuous development
    of this threat not only for Asian countries but also for those
    Western powers that used to take advantage of North
    Korea’s weak military and government. Ambassador Jamsheed
    Marker stated that for president George W. Busch, North Korea
    had become part of the "axis of evil" and together with the
    United Nations the United States proceeded to apply sanctions
    to North Korea which were perceived by the government of
    Pyongyang as "an act of war".

    A powerful argument of why North Korea had engaged
    into nuclear development could be that they had obtained a
    strong means for non-aggression against those countries who at
    one time threatened them with invasion.

    The production and usage of nuclear weapons might not
    be an appropriate manner in order to gain international
    recognition or support as North Korea has done, but we must
    also consider that this strategy is a final resource
    implemented by a moribund government which screamed repeatedly
    for international help but was never heard.

    There is a direct connection between the mentality of
    people during the Korean War and the present nuclear
    controversy. Looking back at the Non Proliferation Treaty
    (N.P.T.), leaders of the United States argue that if North
    Korea is allowed to act fraudulently on the N.P.T., it will be
    impossible to contain the spread of nuclear weapons around the
    world. However, past U.S. actions raise serious questions about
    the sincerity of this argument.

    According to Dr. Martin Hart-Landsberg in his
    Technology Review analysis for nuclear proliferation, Israel,
    India, and
    Pakistan, all known to have nuclear weapons, have refused to
    sign the N.P.T. or allow inspections to their nuclear
    facilities. South Africa, another
    country that had weapons but decided to halt production in
    1990, did not sign the treaty until 1992. In none of these
    cases the United States has looked for tough international
    action and furthermore, there is no actual proof that North
    Korea is actually producing nuclear weapons.

    After observing these examples, we could say that the
    United States is simply focusing on the North Korean case
    because of resentment towards the loss of the war in the
    1950’s when the Pyongyang government resisted falling
    under American forces.

    As is common knowledge, there are many countries in
    constant violation of the N.P.T. but it does not seem that the
    United Nations is being reciprocal to them as them are to North
    Korea.

    Even though North Korea violated the N.P.T. by not
    allowing inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency
    (I.A.E.A) and also by continuing production of plutonium, The
    United States has also violated the treaty in a more
    considerable manner.

    According to the treaty, the nuclear weapon states
    (China, England, France, Russia, and the United States) may not
    threaten non nuclear weapon states at any moment and
    furthermore must protect them from any other nuclear weapon
    state who wishes to attack them at any given time.

    The United States has repeatedly threatened North
    Korea with nuclear attack which provides with a solid proof of
    being in direct violation of the Non Proliferation
    Treaty.

    North Korea and its government have facts such as the
    one just mentioned to be used as an excuse for their nuclear
    arms build up and to be seen internationally as the country
    which is being oppressed by the United States.

    Lately, United Nations’ officials have been
    organizing the next session of talks with North Koreans. In
    this conference the countries of North Korea, South Korea, The
    United States, Japan, Russia, and China would be invited in
    order to bring their input to the table and be able to consider
    their points of view. It is easy to observe how the Pyongyang
    government is not convinced about the commitment of the
    countries involved in resolving the problem because almost
    immediately after the U.N. announcement, the government of
    North Korea through an unidentified spokesperson for the
    foreign ministry, created doubts about their country’s
    participation in the future six-party talks aimed at resolving
    the nuclear crisis.

    In conclusion, the reasons or excuses exposed by the
    influenced countries throughout the last fifty years have been
    valid in its majority.

    The subject now relies on a strong, impartial
    international institution like the United Nations which can
    arrange for mandatory talks to make both parties follow a
    structured policy to reach a solution. The defensive strategy
    adopted by North Korea by producing nuclear weapons as a way to
    deter international influence in their own sovereignty, is
    certainly the reciprocal and only option for them to be able to
    compete in the global markets.

    Bibliography

    Demick, Barbara and Sonny, Efron "N. Korea says it
    may seize reactor." St Petersburg Times, 7 November
    2003, sec. A.

    Hart-Landsberg, Martin, "Who is Threatening Who",
    Technology Review 97 (1994): 72.

    Marker, Jamsheed, interviewed by author, 6 October
    2003.

    Sigal, Leon V, Disarming Strangers: Nuclear
    Diplomacy with North Korea (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton
    University Press, c1998).

    Whan Kihl, Young, Korea and the World: Beyonf the
    Cold War (Oxford: Westview Press, c1994).

    Fabio Fermi

    November 15th 2003

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