Two U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers fly from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, for a 10-hour mission, with an escort of a pair of Japan Self-Defense Forces F-2 fighter jets in the vicinity of Kyushu, Japan August 8, 2017. U.S. Air Force/Handout via REUTERS (REUTERS)
Eliot Cohen, The Atlantic: America Is Not Ready for a War in North Korea
If loose words about fire and fury are a mere negotiating tactic, they will not deliver what the United States desires.
If you want to know why you should be concerned that the United States could blunder into an ill-conceived war on the Korean peninsula, consider three statements:
“We’ll handle North Korea. We’ll be able to handle North Korea. It will be handled. We handle everything.” (Donald Trump, July 31)
“The president’s been very clear about it. He said he’s not gonna tolerate North Korea being able to threaten the United States. If they have nuclear weapons that can threaten the United States, it’s intolerable from the president’s perspective. So of course, we have to provide all options to do that. And that includes a military option.” (Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster, August 5)
"North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen." (Donald Trump, August 8)
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s plaintive words about the United States not being North Korea’s enemy (August 1), or his reassurance that the military option has not drawn closer (August 9), do not count much, partly because he does not count much in American foreign policy these days, and partly because in this administration above all, only the president counts. They do, however, confuse the message of an already chaotic administration.
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WNU Editor: I am not bothered by the rhetoric from President Trump, US Sec. of Defense Mattis, etc. against North Korea. Those who oppose President Trump in the U.S. and elsewhere may find his warnings/threats unsettling, but for those in Asia .... and for those who have spent a lot of time there and who have developed an understanding of the culture .... this rhetoric and warnings are long overdue. By not responding forcefully, the U.S. would have risked losing face, and in turn be perceived as a non-engaged force in the region .... a potentially catastrophic position to be in when one looks at how aggressive North Korea has become in the past 2 years. I am also not worried that the U.S. would make the decision to go to war alone .... the resources are not there to sustain such a conflict for a period of time, and our allies in the region (principally South Korea and Japan) will want to make sure that every avenue is used before making that fateful decision. Whether the U.S. likes it or not .... the Japanese and the South Koreans have veto power on such a decision. But what I am worried about is what will North Korea do. I have zero confidence that someone like North Korea dictator Kim Jong-Un will do the right thing ... what I expect him to do is to push boundaries and see what he can get away with .... and he will do it because he has nothing else better to do. But that is the rub .... he may push a situation that will result in a shooting war, and when that happens, all bets are off on what will happen next.
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